1 This is gnupg.info, produced by makeinfo version 6.5 from gnupg.texi.
3 This is the 'The GNU Privacy Guard Manual' (version 2.2.29-beta11, June
6 (C) 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
7 (C) 2013, 2014, 2015 Werner Koch.
8 (C) 2015, 2016, 2017 g10 Code GmbH.
10 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this
11 document under the terms of the GNU General Public License as
12 published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 3 of the
13 License, or (at your option) any later version. The text of the
14 license can be found in the section entitled "Copying".
15 INFO-DIR-SECTION GNU Utilities
17 * gpg2: (gnupg). OpenPGP encryption and signing tool.
18 * gpgsm: (gnupg). S/MIME encryption and signing tool.
19 * gpg-agent: (gnupg). The secret key daemon.
20 * dirmngr: (gnupg). X.509 CRL and OCSP server.
21 * dirmngr-client: (gnupg). X.509 CRL and OCSP client.
25 File: gnupg.info, Node: Top, Next: Installation, Up: (dir)
27 Using the GNU Privacy Guard
28 ***************************
30 This is the 'The GNU Privacy Guard Manual' (version 2.2.29-beta11, June
33 (C) 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
34 (C) 2013, 2014, 2015 Werner Koch.
35 (C) 2015, 2016, 2017 g10 Code GmbH.
37 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this
38 document under the terms of the GNU General Public License as
39 published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 3 of the
40 License, or (at your option) any later version. The text of the
41 license can be found in the section entitled "Copying".
43 This manual documents how to use the GNU Privacy Guard system as well
44 as the administration and the architecture.
48 * Installation:: A short installation guide.
50 * Invoking GPG-AGENT:: How to launch the secret key daemon.
51 * Invoking DIRMNGR:: How to launch the CRL and OCSP daemon.
52 * Invoking GPG:: Using the OpenPGP protocol.
53 * Invoking GPGSM:: Using the S/MIME protocol.
54 * Invoking SCDAEMON:: How to handle Smartcards.
55 * Specify a User ID:: How to Specify a User Id.
56 * Trust Values:: How GnuPG displays trust values.
58 * Helper Tools:: Description of small helper tools
59 * Web Key Service:: Tools for the Web Key Service
61 * Howtos:: How to do certain things.
62 * System Notes:: Notes pertaining to certain OSes.
63 * Debugging:: How to solve problems
65 * Copying:: GNU General Public License says
66 how you can copy and share GnuPG
67 * Contributors:: People who have contributed to GnuPG.
69 * Glossary:: Short description of terms used.
70 * Option Index:: Index to command line options.
71 * Environment Index:: Index to environment variables and files.
72 * Index:: Index of concepts and symbol names.
75 File: gnupg.info, Node: Installation, Next: Invoking GPG-AGENT, Prev: Top, Up: Top
77 1 A short installation guide
78 ****************************
80 Unfortunately the installation guide has not been finished in time.
81 Instead of delaying the release of GnuPG 2.0 even further, I decided to
82 release without that guide. The chapter on gpg-agent and gpgsm do
83 include brief information on how to set up the whole thing. Please
84 watch the GnuPG website for updates of the documentation. In the
85 meantime you may search the GnuPG mailing list archives or ask on the
86 gnupg-users mailing list for advise on how to solve problems or how to
87 get that whole thing up and running.
89 ** Building the software
91 Building the software is described in the file 'INSTALL'. Given that
92 you are already reading this documentation we can only give some extra
95 To comply with the rules on GNU systems you should have build time
96 configured 'gnupg' using:
98 ./configure --sysconfdir=/etc --localstatedir=/var
100 This is to make sure that system wide configuration files are
101 searched in the directory '/etc' and variable data below '/var'; the
102 default would be to also install them below '/usr/local' where the
103 binaries get installed. If you selected to use the '--prefix=/' you
104 obviously don't need those option as they are the default then.
106 ** Notes on setting a root CA key to trusted
108 X.509 is based on a hierarchical key infrastructure. At the root of
109 the tree a trusted anchor (root certificate) is required. There are
110 usually no other means of verifying whether this root certificate is
111 trustworthy than looking it up in a list. GnuPG uses a file
112 ('trustlist.txt') to keep track of all root certificates it knows about.
113 There are 3 ways to get certificates into this list:
115 * Use the list which comes with GnuPG. However this list only
116 contains a few root certificates. Most installations will need
119 * Let 'gpgsm' ask you whether you want to insert a new root
120 certificate. This feature is enabled by default; you may disable
121 it using the option 'no-allow-mark-trusted' into 'gpg-agent.conf'.
123 * Manually maintain the list of trusted root certificates. For a
124 multi user installation this can be done once for all users on a
125 machine. Specific changes on a per-user base are also possible.
128 File: gnupg.info, Node: Invoking GPG-AGENT, Next: Invoking DIRMNGR, Prev: Installation, Up: Top
133 'gpg-agent' is a daemon to manage secret (private) keys independently
134 from any protocol. It is used as a backend for 'gpg' and 'gpgsm' as
135 well as for a couple of other utilities.
137 The agent is automatically started on demand by 'gpg', 'gpgsm',
138 'gpgconf', or 'gpg-connect-agent'. Thus there is no reason to start it
139 manually. In case you want to use the included Secure Shell Agent you
140 may start the agent using:
142 gpg-connect-agent /bye
144 If you want to manually terminate the currently-running agent, you can
147 gpgconf --kill gpg-agent
149 You should always add the following lines to your '.bashrc' or whatever
150 initialization file is used for all shell invocations:
155 It is important that this environment variable always reflects the
156 output of the 'tty' command. For W32 systems this option is not
159 Please make sure that a proper pinentry program has been installed
160 under the default filename (which is system dependent) or use the option
161 'pinentry-program' to specify the full name of that program. It is
162 often useful to install a symbolic link from the actual used pinentry
163 (e.g. '/usr/local/bin/pinentry-gtk') to the expected one (e.g.
164 '/usr/local/bin/pinentry').
166 *Note Option Index::, for an index to 'GPG-AGENT''s commands and
171 * Agent Commands:: List of all commands.
172 * Agent Options:: List of all options.
173 * Agent Configuration:: Configuration files.
174 * Agent Signals:: Use of some signals.
175 * Agent Examples:: Some usage examples.
176 * Agent Protocol:: The protocol the agent uses.
179 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent Commands, Next: Agent Options, Up: Invoking GPG-AGENT
184 Commands are not distinguished from options except for the fact that
185 only one command is allowed.
188 Print the program version and licensing information. Note that you
189 cannot abbreviate this command.
193 Print a usage message summarizing the most useful command-line
194 options. Note that you cannot abbreviate this command.
197 Print a list of all available options and commands. Note that you
198 cannot abbreviate this command.
201 Run in server mode and wait for commands on the 'stdin'. The
202 default mode is to create a socket and listen for commands there.
204 '--daemon [COMMAND LINE]'
205 Start the gpg-agent as a daemon; that is, detach it from the
206 console and run it in the background.
208 As an alternative you may create a new process as a child of
209 gpg-agent: 'gpg-agent --daemon /bin/sh'. This way you get a new
210 shell with the environment setup properly; after you exit from this
211 shell, gpg-agent terminates within a few seconds.
214 Run in the foreground, sending logs by default to stderr, and
215 listening on provided file descriptors, which must already be bound
216 to listening sockets. This command is useful when running under
217 systemd or other similar process supervision schemes. This option
218 is not supported on Windows.
220 In -supervised mode, different file descriptors can be provided for
221 use as different socket types (e.g. ssh, extra) as long as they
222 are identified in the environment variable 'LISTEN_FDNAMES' (see
223 sd_listen_fds(3) on some Linux distributions for more information
227 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent Options, Next: Agent Configuration, Prev: Agent Commands, Up: Invoking GPG-AGENT
232 Options may either be used on the command line or, after stripping off
233 the two leading dashes, in the configuration file.
236 Reads configuration from FILE instead of from the default per-user
237 configuration file. The default configuration file is named
238 'gpg-agent.conf' and expected in the '.gnupg' directory directly
239 below the home directory of the user. This option is ignored if
240 used in an options file.
243 Set the name of the home directory to DIR. If this option is not
244 used, the home directory defaults to '~/.gnupg'. It is only
245 recognized when given on the command line. It also overrides any
246 home directory stated through the environment variable 'GNUPGHOME'
247 or (on Windows systems) by means of the Registry entry
248 HKCU\SOFTWARE\GNU\GNUPG:HOMEDIR.
250 On Windows systems it is possible to install GnuPG as a portable
251 application. In this case only this command line option is
252 considered, all other ways to set a home directory are ignored.
254 To install GnuPG as a portable application under Windows, create an
255 empty file named 'gpgconf.ctl' in the same directory as the tool
256 'gpgconf.exe'. The root of the installation is then that
257 directory; or, if 'gpgconf.exe' has been installed directly below a
258 directory named 'bin', its parent directory. You also need to make
259 sure that the following directories exist and are writable:
260 'ROOT/home' for the GnuPG home and 'ROOT/usr/local/var/cache/gnupg'
261 for internal cache files.
265 Outputs additional information while running. You can increase the
266 verbosity by giving several verbose commands to 'gpg-agent', such
271 Try to be as quiet as possible.
274 Don't invoke a pinentry or do any other thing requiring human
277 '--faked-system-time EPOCH'
278 This option is only useful for testing; it sets the system time
279 back or forth to EPOCH which is the number of seconds elapsed since
282 '--debug-level LEVEL'
283 Select the debug level for investigating problems. LEVEL may be a
284 numeric value or a keyword:
287 No debugging at all. A value of less than 1 may be used
288 instead of the keyword.
290 Some basic debug messages. A value between 1 and 2 may be
291 used instead of the keyword.
293 More verbose debug messages. A value between 3 and 5 may be
294 used instead of the keyword.
296 Even more detailed messages. A value between 6 and 8 may be
297 used instead of the keyword.
299 All of the debug messages you can get. A value greater than 8
300 may be used instead of the keyword. The creation of hash
301 tracing files is only enabled if the keyword is used.
303 How these messages are mapped to the actual debugging flags is not
304 specified and may change with newer releases of this program. They
305 are however carefully selected to best aid in debugging.
308 This option is only useful for debugging and the behavior may
309 change at any time without notice. FLAGS are bit encoded and may
310 be given in usual C-Syntax. The currently defined bits are:
313 X.509 or OpenPGP protocol related data
315 values of big number integers
317 low level crypto operations
323 show memory statistics
325 write hashed data to files named 'dbgmd-000*'
327 trace Assuan protocol
329 bypass all certificate validation
332 Same as '--debug=0xffffffff'
335 When running in server mode, wait N seconds before entering the
336 actual processing loop and print the pid. This gives time to
339 '--debug-quick-random'
340 This option inhibits the use of the very secure random quality
341 level (Libgcrypt’s 'GCRY_VERY_STRONG_RANDOM') and degrades all
342 request down to standard random quality. It is only used for
343 testing and should not be used for any production quality keys.
344 This option is only effective when given on the command line.
346 On GNU/Linux, another way to quickly generate insecure keys is to
347 use 'rngd' to fill the kernel's entropy pool with lower quality
348 random data. 'rngd' is typically provided by the 'rng-tools'
349 package. It can be run as follows: 'sudo rngd -f -r /dev/urandom'.
352 This option enables extra debug information pertaining to the
353 Pinentry. As of now it is only useful when used along with
357 Don't detach the process from the console. This is mainly useful
364 Format the info output in daemon mode for use with the standard
365 Bourne shell or the C-shell respectively. The default is to guess
366 it based on the environment variable 'SHELL' which is correct in
371 Tell the pinentry to grab the keyboard and mouse. This option
372 should be used on X-Servers to avoid X-sniffing attacks. Any use
373 of the option '--grab' overrides an used option '--no-grab'. The
374 default is '--no-grab'.
377 Append all logging output to FILE. This is very helpful in seeing
378 what the agent actually does. Use 'socket://' to log to socket.
379 If neither a log file nor a log file descriptor has been set on a
380 Windows platform, the Registry entry
381 'HKCU\Software\GNU\GnuPG:DefaultLogFile', if set, is used to
382 specify the logging output.
384 '--no-allow-mark-trusted'
385 Do not allow clients to mark keys as trusted, i.e. put them into
386 the 'trustlist.txt' file. This makes it harder for users to
387 inadvertently accept Root-CA keys.
389 '--allow-preset-passphrase'
390 This option allows the use of 'gpg-preset-passphrase' to seed the
391 internal cache of 'gpg-agent' with passphrases.
393 '--no-allow-loopback-pinentry'
394 '--allow-loopback-pinentry'
395 Disallow or allow clients to use the loopback pinentry features;
396 see the option 'pinentry-mode' for details. Allow is the default.
398 The '--force' option of the Assuan command 'DELETE_KEY' is also
399 controlled by this option: The option is ignored if a loopback
400 pinentry is disallowed.
402 '--no-allow-external-cache'
403 Tell Pinentry not to enable features which use an external cache
406 Some desktop environments prefer to unlock all credentials with one
407 master password and may have installed a Pinentry which employs an
408 additional external cache to implement such a policy. By using
409 this option the Pinentry is advised not to make use of such a cache
410 and instead always ask the user for the requested passphrase.
412 '--allow-emacs-pinentry'
413 Tell Pinentry to allow features to divert the passphrase entry to a
414 running Emacs instance. How this is exactly handled depends on the
415 version of the used Pinentry.
417 '--ignore-cache-for-signing'
418 This option will let 'gpg-agent' bypass the passphrase cache for
419 all signing operation. Note that there is also a per-session
420 option to control this behavior but this command line option takes
423 '--default-cache-ttl N'
424 Set the time a cache entry is valid to N seconds. The default is
425 600 seconds. Each time a cache entry is accessed, the entry's
426 timer is reset. To set an entry's maximum lifetime, use
427 'max-cache-ttl'. Note that a cached passphrase may not be evicted
428 immediately from memory if no client requests a cache operation.
429 This is due to an internal housekeeping function which is only run
432 '--default-cache-ttl-ssh N'
433 Set the time a cache entry used for SSH keys is valid to N seconds.
434 The default is 1800 seconds. Each time a cache entry is accessed,
435 the entry's timer is reset. To set an entry's maximum lifetime,
436 use 'max-cache-ttl-ssh'.
439 Set the maximum time a cache entry is valid to N seconds. After
440 this time a cache entry will be expired even if it has been
441 accessed recently or has been set using 'gpg-preset-passphrase'.
442 The default is 2 hours (7200 seconds).
444 '--max-cache-ttl-ssh N'
445 Set the maximum time a cache entry used for SSH keys is valid to N
446 seconds. After this time a cache entry will be expired even if it
447 has been accessed recently or has been set using
448 'gpg-preset-passphrase'. The default is 2 hours (7200 seconds).
450 '--enforce-passphrase-constraints'
451 Enforce the passphrase constraints by not allowing the user to
452 bypass them using the "Take it anyway" button.
454 '--min-passphrase-len N'
455 Set the minimal length of a passphrase. When entering a new
456 passphrase shorter than this value a warning will be displayed.
459 '--min-passphrase-nonalpha N'
460 Set the minimal number of digits or special characters required in
461 a passphrase. When entering a new passphrase with less than this
462 number of digits or special characters a warning will be displayed.
465 '--check-passphrase-pattern FILE'
466 Check the passphrase against the pattern given in FILE. When
467 entering a new passphrase matching one of these pattern a warning
468 will be displayed. FILE should be an absolute filename. The
469 default is not to use any pattern file.
471 Security note: It is known that checking a passphrase against a
472 list of pattern or even against a complete dictionary is not very
473 effective to enforce good passphrases. Users will soon figure up
474 ways to bypass such a policy. A better policy is to educate users
475 on good security behavior and optionally to run a passphrase
476 cracker regularly on all users passphrases to catch the very simple
479 '--max-passphrase-days N'
480 Ask the user to change the passphrase if N days have passed since
481 the last change. With '--enforce-passphrase-constraints' set the
482 user may not bypass this check.
484 '--enable-passphrase-history'
485 This option does nothing yet.
487 '--pinentry-invisible-char CHAR'
488 This option asks the Pinentry to use CHAR for displaying hidden
489 characters. CHAR must be one character UTF-8 string. A Pinentry
490 may or may not honor this request.
492 '--pinentry-timeout N'
493 This option asks the Pinentry to timeout after N seconds with no
494 user input. The default value of 0 does not ask the pinentry to
495 timeout, however a Pinentry may use its own default timeout value
496 in this case. A Pinentry may or may not honor this request.
498 '--pinentry-program FILENAME'
499 Use program FILENAME as the PIN entry. The default is installation
500 dependent. With the default configuration the name of the default
501 pinentry is 'pinentry'; if that file does not exist but a
502 'pinentry-basic' exist the latter is used.
504 On a Windows platform the default is to use the first existing
505 program from this list: 'bin\pinentry.exe',
506 '..\Gpg4win\bin\pinentry.exe', '..\Gpg4win\pinentry.exe',
507 '..\GNU\GnuPG\pinentry.exe', '..\GNU\bin\pinentry.exe',
508 'bin\pinentry-basic.exe' where the file names are relative to the
509 GnuPG installation directory.
511 '--pinentry-touch-file FILENAME'
512 By default the filename of the socket gpg-agent is listening for
513 requests is passed to Pinentry, so that it can touch that file
514 before exiting (it does this only in curses mode). This option
515 changes the file passed to Pinentry to FILENAME. The special name
516 '/dev/null' may be used to completely disable this feature. Note
517 that Pinentry will not create that file, it will only change the
518 modification and access time.
520 '--scdaemon-program FILENAME'
521 Use program FILENAME as the Smartcard daemon. The default is
522 installation dependent and can be shown with the 'gpgconf' command.
525 Do not make use of the scdaemon tool. This option has the effect
526 of disabling the ability to do smartcard operations. Note, that
527 enabling this option at runtime does not kill an already forked
530 '--disable-check-own-socket'
531 'gpg-agent' employs a periodic self-test to detect a stolen socket.
532 This usually means a second instance of 'gpg-agent' has taken over
533 the socket and 'gpg-agent' will then terminate itself. This option
534 may be used to disable this self-test for debugging purposes.
536 '--use-standard-socket'
537 '--no-use-standard-socket'
538 '--use-standard-socket-p'
539 Since GnuPG 2.1 the standard socket is always used. These options
540 have no more effect. The command 'gpg-agent
541 --use-standard-socket-p' will thus always return success.
547 '--lc-messages STRING'
548 '--xauthority STRING'
549 These options are used with the server mode to pass localization
554 Ignore requests to change the current 'tty' or X window system's
555 'DISPLAY' variable respectively. This is useful to lock the
556 pinentry to pop up at the 'tty' or display you started the agent.
559 Set the size of the queue for pending connections. The default is
562 '--extra-socket NAME'
563 The extra socket is created by default, you may use this option to
564 change the name of the socket. To disable the creation of the
565 socket use "none" or "/dev/null" for NAME.
567 Also listen on native gpg-agent connections on the given socket.
568 The intended use for this extra socket is to setup a Unix domain
569 socket forwarding from a remote machine to this socket on the local
570 machine. A 'gpg' running on the remote machine may then connect to
571 the local gpg-agent and use its private keys. This enables
572 decrypting or signing data on a remote machine without exposing the
573 private keys to the remote machine.
575 '--enable-extended-key-format'
576 '--disable-extended-key-format'
577 Since version 2.2.22 keys are created in the extended private key
578 format by default. Changing the passphrase of a key will also
579 convert the key to that new format. This key format is supported
580 since GnuPG version 2.1.12 and thus there should be no need to
581 disable it. Anyway, the disable option still allows to revert to
582 the old behavior for new keys; be aware that keys are never
583 migrated back to the old format. If the enable option has been
584 used the disable option won't have an effect. The advantage of the
585 extended private key format is that it is text based and can carry
586 additional meta data. In extended key format the OCB mode is used
589 '--enable-ssh-support'
590 '--enable-putty-support'
592 The OpenSSH Agent protocol is always enabled, but 'gpg-agent' will
593 only set the 'SSH_AUTH_SOCK' variable if this flag is given.
595 In this mode of operation, the agent does not only implement the
596 gpg-agent protocol, but also the agent protocol used by OpenSSH
597 (through a separate socket). Consequently, it should be possible
598 to use the gpg-agent as a drop-in replacement for the well known
601 SSH Keys, which are to be used through the agent, need to be added
602 to the gpg-agent initially through the ssh-add utility. When a key
603 is added, ssh-add will ask for the password of the provided key
604 file and send the unprotected key material to the agent; this
605 causes the gpg-agent to ask for a passphrase, which is to be used
606 for encrypting the newly received key and storing it in a gpg-agent
609 Once a key has been added to the gpg-agent this way, the gpg-agent
610 will be ready to use the key.
612 Note: in case the gpg-agent receives a signature request, the user
613 might need to be prompted for a passphrase, which is necessary for
614 decrypting the stored key. Since the ssh-agent protocol does not
615 contain a mechanism for telling the agent on which display/terminal
616 it is running, gpg-agent's ssh-support will use the TTY or X
617 display where gpg-agent has been started. To switch this display
618 to the current one, the following command may be used:
620 gpg-connect-agent updatestartuptty /bye
622 Although all GnuPG components try to start the gpg-agent as needed,
623 this is not possible for the ssh support because ssh does not know
624 about it. Thus if no GnuPG tool which accesses the agent has been
625 run, there is no guarantee that ssh is able to use gpg-agent for
626 authentication. To fix this you may start gpg-agent if needed
627 using this simple command:
629 gpg-connect-agent /bye
631 Adding the '--verbose' shows the progress of starting the agent.
633 The '--enable-putty-support' is only available under Windows and
634 allows the use of gpg-agent with the ssh implementation 'putty'.
635 This is similar to the regular ssh-agent support but makes use of
636 Windows message queue as required by 'putty'.
638 '--ssh-fingerprint-digest'
640 Select the digest algorithm used to compute ssh fingerprints that
641 are communicated to the user, e.g. in pinentry dialogs. OpenSSH
642 has transitioned from using MD5 to the more secure SHA256.
644 '--auto-expand-secmem N'
645 Allow Libgcrypt to expand its secure memory area as required. The
646 optional value N is a non-negative integer with a suggested size in
647 bytes of each additionally allocated secure memory area. The value
648 is rounded up to the next 32 KiB; usual C style prefixes are
649 allowed. For an heavy loaded gpg-agent with many concurrent
650 connection this option avoids sign or decrypt errors due to out of
651 secure memory error returns.
653 '--s2k-calibration MILLISECONDS'
654 Change the default calibration time to MILLISECONDS. The given
655 value is capped at 60 seconds; a value of 0 resets to the
656 compiled-in default. This option is re-read on a SIGHUP (or
657 'gpgconf --reload gpg-agent') and the S2K count is then
661 Specify the iteration count used to protect the passphrase. This
662 option can be used to override the auto-calibration done by
663 default. The auto-calibration computes a count which requires by
664 default 100ms to mangle a given passphrase. See also
667 To view the actually used iteration count and the milliseconds
668 required for an S2K operation use:
670 gpg-connect-agent 'GETINFO s2k_count' /bye
671 gpg-connect-agent 'GETINFO s2k_time' /bye
673 To view the auto-calibrated count use:
675 gpg-connect-agent 'GETINFO s2k_count_cal' /bye
678 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent Configuration, Next: Agent Signals, Prev: Agent Options, Up: Invoking GPG-AGENT
683 There are a few configuration files needed for the operation of the
684 agent. By default they may all be found in the current home directory
685 (*note option --homedir::).
688 This is the standard configuration file read by 'gpg-agent' on
689 startup. It may contain any valid long option; the leading two
690 dashes may not be entered and the option may not be abbreviated.
691 This file is also read after a 'SIGHUP' however only a few options
692 will actually have an effect. This default name may be changed on
693 the command line (*note option --options::). You should backup
697 This is the list of trusted keys. You should backup this file.
699 Comment lines, indicated by a leading hash mark, as well as empty
700 lines are ignored. To mark a key as trusted you need to enter its
701 fingerprint followed by a space and a capital letter 'S'. Colons
702 may optionally be used to separate the bytes of a fingerprint; this
703 enables cutting and pasting the fingerprint from a key listing
704 output. If the line is prefixed with a '!' the key is explicitly
705 marked as not trusted.
707 Here is an example where two keys are marked as ultimately trusted
708 and one as not trusted:
710 # CN=Wurzel ZS 3,O=Intevation GmbH,C=DE
711 A6935DD34EF3087973C706FC311AA2CCF733765B S
713 # CN=PCA-1-Verwaltung-02/O=PKI-1-Verwaltung/C=DE
714 DC:BD:69:25:48:BD:BB:7E:31:6E:BB:80:D3:00:80:35:D4:F8:A6:CD S
716 # CN=Root-CA/O=Schlapphuete/L=Pullach/C=DE
717 !14:56:98:D3:FE:9C:CA:5A:31:6E:BC:81:D3:11:4E:00:90:A3:44:C2 S
719 Before entering a key into this file, you need to ensure its
720 authenticity. How to do this depends on your organisation; your
721 administrator might have already entered those keys which are
722 deemed trustworthy enough into this file. Places where to look for
723 the fingerprint of a root certificate are letters received from the
724 CA or the website of the CA (after making 100% sure that this is
725 indeed the website of that CA). You may want to consider
726 disallowing interactive updates of this file by using the *note
727 option --no-allow-mark-trusted::. It might even be advisable to
728 change the permissions to read-only so that this file can't be
729 changed inadvertently.
731 As a special feature a line 'include-default' will include a global
732 list of trusted certificates (e.g. '/etc/gnupg/trustlist.txt').
733 This global list is also used if the local list is not available.
735 It is possible to add further flags after the 'S' for use by the
739 Relax checking of some root certificate requirements. As of
740 now this flag allows the use of root certificates with a
741 missing basicConstraints attribute (despite that it is a MUST
742 for CA certificates) and disables CRL checking for the root
746 If validation of a certificate finally issued by a CA with
747 this flag set fails, try again using the chain validation
751 This file is used when support for the secure shell agent protocol
752 has been enabled (*note option --enable-ssh-support::). Only keys
753 present in this file are used in the SSH protocol. You should
756 The 'ssh-add' tool may be used to add new entries to this file; you
757 may also add them manually. Comment lines, indicated by a leading
758 hash mark, as well as empty lines are ignored. An entry starts
759 with optional whitespace, followed by the keygrip of the key given
760 as 40 hex digits, optionally followed by the caching TTL in seconds
761 and another optional field for arbitrary flags. A non-zero TTL
762 overrides the global default as set by '--default-cache-ttl-ssh'.
764 The only flag support is 'confirm'. If this flag is found for a
765 key, each use of the key will pop up a pinentry to confirm the use
766 of that key. The flag is automatically set if a new key was loaded
767 into 'gpg-agent' using the option '-c' of the 'ssh-add' command.
769 The keygrip may be prefixed with a '!' to disable an entry.
771 The following example lists exactly one key. Note that keys
772 available through a OpenPGP smartcard in the active smartcard
773 reader are implicitly added to this list; i.e. there is no need to
776 # Key added on: 2011-07-20 20:38:46
777 # Fingerprint: 5e:8d:c4:ad:e7:af:6e:27:8a:d6:13:e4:79:ad:0b:81
778 34B62F25E277CF13D3C6BCEBFD3F85D08F0A864B 0 confirm
782 This is the directory where gpg-agent stores the private keys.
783 Each key is stored in a file with the name made up of the keygrip
784 and the suffix 'key'. You should backup all files in this
785 directory and take great care to keep this backup closed away.
787 Note that on larger installations, it is useful to put predefined
788 files into the directory '/etc/skel/.gnupg' so that newly created users
789 start up with a working configuration. For existing users the a small
790 helper script is provided to create these files (*note addgnupghome::).
793 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent Signals, Next: Agent Examples, Prev: Agent Configuration, Up: Invoking GPG-AGENT
795 2.4 Use of some signals
796 =======================
798 A running 'gpg-agent' may be controlled by signals, i.e. using the
799 'kill' command to send a signal to the process.
801 Here is a list of supported signals:
804 This signal flushes all cached passphrases and if the program has
805 been started with a configuration file, the configuration file is
806 read again. Only certain options are honored: 'quiet', 'verbose',
807 'debug', 'debug-all', 'debug-level', 'debug-pinentry', 'no-grab',
808 'pinentry-program', 'pinentry-invisible-char', 'default-cache-ttl',
809 'max-cache-ttl', 'ignore-cache-for-signing', 's2k-count',
810 'no-allow-external-cache', 'allow-emacs-pinentry',
811 'no-allow-mark-trusted', 'disable-scdaemon', and
812 'disable-check-own-socket'. 'scdaemon-program' is also supported
813 but due to the current implementation, which calls the scdaemon
814 only once, it is not of much use unless you manually kill the
818 Shuts down the process but waits until all current requests are
819 fulfilled. If the process has received 3 of these signals and
820 requests are still pending, a shutdown is forced.
823 Shuts down the process immediately.
826 Dump internal information to the log file.
829 This signal is used for internal purposes.
832 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent Examples, Next: Agent Protocol, Prev: Agent Signals, Up: Invoking GPG-AGENT
837 It is important to set the environment variable 'GPG_TTY' in your login
838 shell, for example in the '~/.bashrc' init script:
840 export GPG_TTY=$(tty)
842 If you enabled the Ssh Agent Support, you also need to tell ssh about
843 it by adding this to your init script:
846 if [ "${gnupg_SSH_AUTH_SOCK_by:-0}" -ne $$ ]; then
847 export SSH_AUTH_SOCK="$(gpgconf --list-dirs agent-ssh-socket)"
851 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent Protocol, Prev: Agent Examples, Up: Invoking GPG-AGENT
853 2.6 Agent's Assuan Protocol
854 ===========================
856 Note: this section does only document the protocol, which is used by
857 GnuPG components; it does not deal with the ssh-agent protocol. To see
858 the full specification of each command, use
860 gpg-connect-agent 'help COMMAND' /bye
862 or just 'help' to list all available commands.
864 The 'gpg-agent' daemon is started on demand by the GnuPG components.
866 To identify a key we use a thing called keygrip which is the SHA-1
867 hash of an canonical encoded S-Expression of the public key as used in
868 Libgcrypt. For the purpose of this interface the keygrip is given as a
869 hex string. The advantage of using this and not the hash of a
870 certificate is that it will be possible to use the same keypair for
871 different protocols, thereby saving space on the token used to keep the
874 The 'gpg-agent' may send status messages during a command or when
875 returning from a command to inform a client about the progress or result
876 of an operation. For example, the INQUIRE_MAXLEN status message may be
877 sent during a server inquire to inform the client of the maximum usable
878 length of the inquired data (which should not be exceeded).
882 * Agent PKDECRYPT:: Decrypting a session key
883 * Agent PKSIGN:: Signing a Hash
884 * Agent GENKEY:: Generating a Key
885 * Agent IMPORT:: Importing a Secret Key
886 * Agent EXPORT:: Exporting a Secret Key
887 * Agent ISTRUSTED:: Importing a Root Certificate
888 * Agent GET_PASSPHRASE:: Ask for a passphrase
889 * Agent CLEAR_PASSPHRASE:: Expire a cached passphrase
890 * Agent PRESET_PASSPHRASE:: Set a passphrase for a keygrip
891 * Agent GET_CONFIRMATION:: Ask for confirmation
892 * Agent HAVEKEY:: Check whether a key is available
893 * Agent LEARN:: Register a smartcard
894 * Agent PASSWD:: Change a Passphrase
895 * Agent UPDATESTARTUPTTY:: Change the Standard Display
896 * Agent GETEVENTCOUNTER:: Get the Event Counters
897 * Agent GETINFO:: Return information about the process
898 * Agent OPTION:: Set options for the session
901 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent PKDECRYPT, Next: Agent PKSIGN, Up: Agent Protocol
903 2.6.1 Decrypting a session key
904 ------------------------------
906 The client asks the server to decrypt a session key. The encrypted
907 session key should have all information needed to select the appropriate
908 secret key or to delegate it to a smartcard.
912 Tell the server about the key to be used for decryption. If this is
913 not used, 'gpg-agent' may try to figure out the key by trying to decrypt
914 the message with each key available.
918 The agent checks whether this command is allowed and then does an
919 INQUIRY to get the ciphertext the client should then send the cipher
922 S: INQUIRE CIPHERTEXT
927 Please note that the server may send status info lines while reading
928 the data lines from the client. The data send is a SPKI like S-Exp with
933 (<param_name1> <mpi>)
935 (<param_namen> <mpi>)))
937 Where algo is a string with the name of the algorithm; see the
938 libgcrypt documentation for a list of valid algorithms. The number and
939 names of the parameters depend on the algorithm. The agent does return
940 an error if there is an inconsistency.
942 If the decryption was successful the decrypted data is returned by
945 Here is an example session:
947 S: INQUIRE CIPHERTEXT
948 C: D (enc-val elg (a 349324324)
949 C: D (b 3F444677CA)))
951 S: # session key follows
953 S: D (value 1234567890ABCDEF0)
954 S: OK decryption successful
956 The “PADDING” status line is only send if gpg-agent can tell what
957 kind of padding is used. As of now only the value 0 is used to indicate
958 that the padding has been removed.
961 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent PKSIGN, Next: Agent GENKEY, Prev: Agent PKDECRYPT, Up: Agent Protocol
966 The client asks the agent to sign a given hash value. A default key
967 will be chosen if no key has been set. To set a key a client first
972 This can be used multiple times to create multiple signature, the
973 list of keys is reset with the next PKSIGN command or a RESET. The
974 server tests whether the key is a valid key to sign something and
977 SETHASH --hash=<name>|<algo> <hexstring>
979 The client can use this command to tell the server about the data
980 <hexstring> (which usually is a hash) to be signed. <algo> is the
981 decimal encoded hash algorithm number as used by Libgcrypt. Either
982 <algo> or -hash=<name> must be given. Valid names for <name> are:
985 The SHA-1 hash algorithm
987 The SHA-256 hash algorithm
989 The RIPE-MD160 hash algorithm
991 The old and broken MD5 hash algorithm
993 A combined hash algorithm as used by the TLS protocol.
995 The actual signing is done using
999 Options are not yet defined, but may later be used to choose among
1000 different algorithms. The agent does then some checks, asks for the
1001 passphrase and as a result the server returns the signature as an SPKI
1002 like S-expression in "D" lines:
1006 (<param_name1> <mpi>)
1008 (<param_namen> <mpi>)))
1010 The operation is affected by the option
1012 OPTION use-cache-for-signing=0|1
1014 The default of '1' uses the cache. Setting this option to '0' will
1015 lead 'gpg-agent' to ignore the passphrase cache. Note, that there is
1016 also a global command line option for 'gpg-agent' to globally disable
1019 Here is an example session:
1025 S: # I did ask the user whether he really wants to sign
1026 S: # I did ask the user for the passphrase
1028 C: D ABCDEF012345678901234
1030 S: # signature follows
1031 S: D (sig-val rsa (s 45435453654612121212))
1035 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent GENKEY, Next: Agent IMPORT, Prev: Agent PKSIGN, Up: Agent Protocol
1037 2.6.3 Generating a Key
1038 ----------------------
1040 This is used to create a new keypair and store the secret key inside the
1041 active PSE -- which is in most cases a Soft-PSE. A not-yet-defined
1042 option allows choosing the storage location. To get the secret key out
1043 of the PSE, a special export tool has to be used.
1045 GENKEY [--no-protection] [--preset] [<cache_nonce>]
1047 Invokes the key generation process and the server will then inquire
1048 on the generation parameters, like:
1051 C: D (genkey (rsa (nbits 1024)))
1054 The format of the key parameters which depends on the algorithm is of
1059 (parameter_name_1 ....)
1061 (parameter_name_n ....)))
1063 If everything succeeds, the server returns the *public key* in a SPKI
1064 like S-Expression like this:
1071 Here is an example session:
1074 C: D (genkey (rsa (nbits 1024)))
1077 S: D (rsa (n 326487324683264) (e 10001)))
1080 The '--no-protection' option may be used to prevent prompting for a
1081 passphrase to protect the secret key while leaving the secret key
1082 unprotected. The '--preset' option may be used to add the passphrase to
1083 the cache using the default cache parameters.
1085 The '--inq-passwd' option may be used to create the key with a
1086 supplied passphrase. When used the agent does an inquiry with the
1087 keyword 'NEWPASSWD' to retrieve that passphrase. This option takes
1088 precedence over '--no-protection'; however if the client sends a empty
1089 (zero-length) passphrase, this is identical to '--no-protection'.
1092 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent IMPORT, Next: Agent EXPORT, Prev: Agent GENKEY, Up: Agent Protocol
1094 2.6.4 Importing a Secret Key
1095 ----------------------------
1097 This operation is not yet supported by GpgAgent. Specialized tools are
1098 to be used for this.
1100 There is no actual need because we can expect that secret keys
1101 created by a 3rd party are stored on a smartcard. If we have generated
1102 the key ourselves, we do not need to import it.
1105 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent EXPORT, Next: Agent ISTRUSTED, Prev: Agent IMPORT, Up: Agent Protocol
1107 2.6.5 Export a Secret Key
1108 -------------------------
1112 Should be done by an extra tool.
1115 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent ISTRUSTED, Next: Agent GET_PASSPHRASE, Prev: Agent EXPORT, Up: Agent Protocol
1117 2.6.6 Importing a Root Certificate
1118 ----------------------------------
1120 Actually we do not import a Root Cert but provide a way to validate any
1121 piece of data by storing its Hash along with a description and an
1122 identifier in the PSE. Here is the interface description:
1124 ISTRUSTED <fingerprint>
1126 Check whether the OpenPGP primary key or the X.509 certificate with
1127 the given fingerprint is an ultimately trusted key or a trusted Root CA
1128 certificate. The fingerprint should be given as a hexstring (without
1129 any blanks or colons or whatever in between) and may be left padded with
1130 00 in case of an MD5 fingerprint. GPGAgent will answer with:
1134 The key is in the table of trusted keys.
1136 ERR 304 (Not Trusted)
1138 The key is not in this table.
1140 Gpg needs the entire list of trusted keys to maintain the web of
1141 trust; the following command is therefore quite helpful:
1145 GpgAgent returns a list of trusted keys line by line:
1147 S: D 000000001234454556565656677878AF2F1ECCFF P
1148 S: D 340387563485634856435645634856438576457A P
1149 S: D FEDC6532453745367FD83474357495743757435D S
1152 The first item on a line is the hexified fingerprint where MD5
1153 fingerprints are '00' padded to the left and the second item is a flag
1154 to indicate the type of key (so that gpg is able to only take care of
1155 PGP keys). P = OpenPGP, S = S/MIME. A client should ignore the rest of
1156 the line, so that we can extend the format in the future.
1158 Finally a client should be able to mark a key as trusted:
1160 MARKTRUSTED FINGERPRINT "P"|"S"
1162 The server will then pop up a window to ask the user whether she
1163 really trusts this key. For this it will probably ask for a text to be
1164 displayed like this:
1166 S: INQUIRE TRUSTDESC
1167 C: D Do you trust the key with the fingerprint @FPR@
1168 C: D bla fasel blurb.
1172 Known sequences with the pattern @foo@ are replaced according to this
1176 Format the fingerprint according to gpg rules for a v3 keys.
1178 Format the fingerprint according to gpg rules for a v4 keys.
1180 Choose an appropriate format to format the fingerprint.
1182 Replaced by a single '@'.
1185 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent GET_PASSPHRASE, Next: Agent CLEAR_PASSPHRASE, Prev: Agent ISTRUSTED, Up: Agent Protocol
1187 2.6.7 Ask for a passphrase
1188 --------------------------
1190 This function is usually used to ask for a passphrase to be used for
1191 symmetric encryption, but may also be used by programs which need
1192 special handling of passphrases. This command uses a syntax which helps
1193 clients to use the agent with minimum effort.
1195 GET_PASSPHRASE [--data] [--check] [--no-ask] [--repeat[=N]] \
1196 [--qualitybar] CACHE_ID \
1197 [ERROR_MESSAGE PROMPT DESCRIPTION]
1199 CACHE_ID is expected to be a string used to identify a cached
1200 passphrase. Use a 'X' to bypass the cache. With no other arguments the
1201 agent returns a cached passphrase or an error. By convention either the
1202 hexified fingerprint of the key shall be used for CACHE_ID or an
1203 arbitrary string prefixed with the name of the calling application and a
1204 colon: Like 'gpg:somestring'.
1206 ERROR_MESSAGE is either a single 'X' for no error message or a string
1207 to be shown as an error message like (e.g. "invalid passphrase").
1208 Blanks must be percent escaped or replaced by '+''.
1210 PROMPT is either a single 'X' for a default prompt or the text to be
1211 shown as the prompt. Blanks must be percent escaped or replaced by '+'.
1213 DESCRIPTION is a text shown above the entry field. Blanks must be
1214 percent escaped or replaced by '+'.
1216 The agent either returns with an error or with a OK followed by the
1217 hex encoded passphrase. Note that the length of the strings is
1218 implicitly limited by the maximum length of a command. If the option
1219 '--data' is used, the passphrase is not returned on the OK line but by
1220 regular data lines; this is the preferred method.
1222 If the option '--check' is used, the standard passphrase constraints
1223 checks are applied. A check is not done if the passphrase has been
1226 If the option '--no-ask' is used and the passphrase is not in the
1227 cache the user will not be asked to enter a passphrase but the error
1228 code 'GPG_ERR_NO_DATA' is returned.
1230 If the option '--qualitybar' is used and a minimum passphrase length
1231 has been configured, a visual indication of the entered passphrase
1234 CLEAR_PASSPHRASE CACHE_ID
1236 may be used to invalidate the cache entry for a passphrase. The
1237 function returns with OK even when there is no cached passphrase.
1240 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent CLEAR_PASSPHRASE, Next: Agent PRESET_PASSPHRASE, Prev: Agent GET_PASSPHRASE, Up: Agent Protocol
1242 2.6.8 Remove a cached passphrase
1243 --------------------------------
1245 Use this command to remove a cached passphrase.
1247 CLEAR_PASSPHRASE [--mode=normal] <cache_id>
1249 The '--mode=normal' option can be used to clear a CACHE_ID that was
1253 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent PRESET_PASSPHRASE, Next: Agent GET_CONFIRMATION, Prev: Agent CLEAR_PASSPHRASE, Up: Agent Protocol
1255 2.6.9 Set a passphrase for a keygrip
1256 ------------------------------------
1258 This command adds a passphrase to the cache for the specified KEYGRIP.
1260 PRESET_PASSPHRASE [--inquire] <string_or_keygrip> <timeout> [<hexstring>]
1262 The passphrase is a hexadecimal string when specified. When not
1263 specified, the passphrase will be retrieved from the pinentry module
1264 unless the '--inquire' option was specified in which case the passphrase
1265 will be retrieved from the client.
1267 The TIMEOUT parameter keeps the passphrase cached for the specified
1268 number of seconds. A value of '-1' means infinite while '0' means the
1269 default (currently only a timeout of -1 is allowed, which means to never
1273 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent GET_CONFIRMATION, Next: Agent HAVEKEY, Prev: Agent PRESET_PASSPHRASE, Up: Agent Protocol
1275 2.6.10 Ask for confirmation
1276 ---------------------------
1278 This command may be used to ask for a simple confirmation by presenting
1279 a text and 2 buttons: Okay and Cancel.
1281 GET_CONFIRMATION DESCRIPTION
1283 DESCRIPTIONis displayed along with a Okay and Cancel button. Blanks
1284 must be percent escaped or replaced by '+'. A 'X' may be used to
1285 display confirmation dialog with a default text.
1287 The agent either returns with an error or with a OK. Note, that the
1288 length of DESCRIPTION is implicitly limited by the maximum length of a
1292 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent HAVEKEY, Next: Agent LEARN, Prev: Agent GET_CONFIRMATION, Up: Agent Protocol
1294 2.6.11 Check whether a key is available
1295 ---------------------------------------
1297 This can be used to see whether a secret key is available. It does not
1298 return any information on whether the key is somehow protected.
1302 The agent answers either with OK or 'No_Secret_Key' (208). The
1303 caller may want to check for other error codes as well. More than one
1304 keygrip may be given. In this case the command returns success if at
1305 least one of the keygrips corresponds to an available secret key.
1308 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent LEARN, Next: Agent PASSWD, Prev: Agent HAVEKEY, Up: Agent Protocol
1310 2.6.12 Register a smartcard
1311 ---------------------------
1315 This command is used to register a smartcard. With the '--send'
1316 option given the certificates are sent back.
1319 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent PASSWD, Next: Agent UPDATESTARTUPTTY, Prev: Agent LEARN, Up: Agent Protocol
1321 2.6.13 Change a Passphrase
1322 --------------------------
1324 PASSWD [--cache-nonce=<c>] [--passwd-nonce=<s>] [--preset] KEYGRIP
1326 This command is used to interactively change the passphrase of the
1327 key identified by the hex string KEYGRIP. The '--preset' option may be
1328 used to add the new passphrase to the cache using the default cache
1332 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent UPDATESTARTUPTTY, Next: Agent GETEVENTCOUNTER, Prev: Agent PASSWD, Up: Agent Protocol
1334 2.6.14 Change the standard display
1335 ----------------------------------
1339 Set the startup TTY and X-DISPLAY variables to the values of this
1340 session. This command is useful to direct future pinentry invocations
1341 to another screen. It is only required because there is no way in the
1342 ssh-agent protocol to convey this information.
1345 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent GETEVENTCOUNTER, Next: Agent GETINFO, Prev: Agent UPDATESTARTUPTTY, Up: Agent Protocol
1347 2.6.15 Get the Event Counters
1348 -----------------------------
1352 This function return one status line with the current values of the
1353 event counters. The event counters are useful to avoid polling by
1354 delaying a poll until something has changed. The values are decimal
1355 numbers in the range '0' to 'UINT_MAX' and wrapping around to 0. The
1356 actual values should not be relied upon; they shall only be used to
1359 The currently defined counters are:
1361 Incremented with any change of any of the other counters.
1363 Incremented for added or removed private keys.
1365 Incremented for changes of the card readers stati.
1368 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent GETINFO, Next: Agent OPTION, Prev: Agent GETEVENTCOUNTER, Up: Agent Protocol
1370 2.6.16 Return information about the process
1371 -------------------------------------------
1373 This is a multipurpose function to return a variety of information.
1377 The value of WHAT specifies the kind of information returned:
1379 Return the version of the program.
1381 Return the process id of the process.
1383 Return the name of the socket used to connect the agent.
1385 Return the name of the socket used for SSH connections. If SSH
1386 support has not been enabled the error 'GPG_ERR_NO_DATA' will be
1390 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent OPTION, Prev: Agent GETINFO, Up: Agent Protocol
1392 2.6.17 Set options for the session
1393 ----------------------------------
1395 Here is a list of session options which are not yet described with other
1396 commands. The general syntax for an Assuan option is:
1403 This may be used to tell gpg-agent of which gpg-agent version the
1404 client is aware of. gpg-agent uses this information to enable
1405 features which might break older clients.
1408 Change the session's environment to be used for the Pinentry.
1414 Set envvar NAME to the empty string
1416 Set envvar NAME to the string VALUE.
1418 'use-cache-for-signing'
1419 See Assuan command 'PKSIGN'.
1421 'allow-pinentry-notify'
1422 This does not need any value. It is used to enable the
1423 PINENTRY_LAUNCHED inquiry.
1426 This option is used to change the operation mode of the pinentry.
1427 The following values are defined:
1430 This is the default mode which pops up a pinentry as needed.
1433 Instead of popping up a pinentry, return the error code
1437 Instead of popping up a pinentry, return the error code
1438 'GPG_ERR_NO_PIN_ENTRY'.
1441 Use a loopback pinentry. This fakes a pinentry by using
1442 inquiries back to the caller to ask for a passphrase. This
1443 option may only be set if the agent has been configured for
1444 that. To disable this feature use *note option
1445 --no-allow-loopback-pinentry::.
1447 'cache-ttl-opt-preset'
1448 This option sets the cache TTL for new entries created by GENKEY
1449 and PASSWD commands when using the '--preset' option. It is not
1450 used a default value is used.
1453 Instead of using the standard S2K count (which is computed on the
1454 fly), the given S2K count is used for new keys or when changing the
1455 passphrase of a key. Values below 65536 are considered to be 0.
1456 This option is valid for the entire session or until reset to 0.
1457 This option is useful if the key is later used on boxes which are
1458 either much slower or faster than the actual box.
1460 'pretend-request-origin'
1461 This option switches the connection into a restricted mode which
1462 handles all further commands in the same way as they would be
1463 handled when originating from the extra or browser socket. Note
1464 that this option is not available in the restricted mode. Valid
1465 values for this option are:
1469 This is a NOP and leaves the connection in the standard way.
1472 Pretend to come from a remote origin in the same way as
1473 connections from the '--extra-socket'.
1476 Pretend to come from a local web browser in the same way as
1477 connections from the '--browser-socket'.
1480 File: gnupg.info, Node: Invoking DIRMNGR, Next: Invoking GPG, Prev: Invoking GPG-AGENT, Up: Top
1485 Since version 2.1 of GnuPG, 'dirmngr' takes care of accessing the
1486 OpenPGP keyservers. As with previous versions it is also used as a
1487 server for managing and downloading certificate revocation lists (CRLs)
1488 for X.509 certificates, downloading X.509 certificates, and providing
1489 access to OCSP providers. Dirmngr is invoked internally by 'gpg',
1490 'gpgsm', or via the 'gpg-connect-agent' tool.
1492 *Note Option Index::,for an index to 'DIRMNGR''s commands and options.
1496 * Dirmngr Commands:: List of all commands.
1497 * Dirmngr Options:: List of all options.
1498 * Dirmngr Configuration:: Configuration files.
1499 * Dirmngr Signals:: Use of signals.
1500 * Dirmngr Examples:: Some usage examples.
1501 * Dirmngr Protocol:: The protocol dirmngr uses.
1504 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr Commands, Next: Dirmngr Options, Up: Invoking DIRMNGR
1509 Commands are not distinguished from options except for the fact that
1510 only one command is allowed.
1513 Print the program version and licensing information. Note that you
1514 cannot abbreviate this command.
1517 Print a usage message summarizing the most useful command-line
1518 options. Note that you cannot abbreviate this command.
1521 Print a list of all available options and commands. Note that you
1522 cannot abbreviate this command.
1525 Run in server mode and wait for commands on the 'stdin'. The
1526 default mode is to create a socket and listen for commands there.
1527 This is only used for testing.
1530 Run in background daemon mode and listen for commands on a socket.
1531 This is the way 'dirmngr' is started on demand by the other GnuPG
1532 components. To force starting 'dirmngr' it is in general best to
1533 use 'gpgconf --launch dirmngr'.
1536 Run in the foreground, sending logs to stderr, and listening on
1537 file descriptor 3, which must already be bound to a listening
1538 socket. This is useful when running under systemd or other similar
1539 process supervision schemes. This option is not supported on
1543 List the contents of the CRL cache on 'stdout'. This is probably
1544 only useful for debugging purposes.
1547 This command requires a filename as additional argument, and it
1548 will make Dirmngr try to import the CRL in FILE into it's cache.
1549 Note, that this is only possible if Dirmngr is able to retrieve the
1550 CA's certificate directly by its own means. In general it is
1551 better to use 'gpgsm''s '--call-dirmngr loadcrl filename' command
1552 so that 'gpgsm' can help dirmngr.
1555 This command requires an URL as additional argument, and it will
1556 make dirmngr try to retrieve and import the CRL from that URL into
1557 it's cache. This is mainly useful for debugging purposes. The
1558 'dirmngr-client' provides the same feature for a running dirmngr.
1561 This commands shuts down an running instance of Dirmngr. This
1562 command has currently no effect.
1565 This command removes all CRLs from Dirmngr's cache. Client
1566 requests will thus trigger reading of fresh CRLs.
1569 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr Options, Next: Dirmngr Configuration, Prev: Dirmngr Commands, Up: Invoking DIRMNGR
1574 Note that all long options with the exception of '--options' and
1575 '--homedir' may also be given in the configuration file after stripping
1576 off the two leading dashes.
1579 Reads configuration from FILE instead of from the default per-user
1580 configuration file. The default configuration file is named
1581 'dirmngr.conf' and expected in the home directory.
1584 Set the name of the home directory to DIR. This option is only
1585 effective when used on the command line. The default is the
1586 directory named '.gnupg' directly below the home directory of the
1587 user unless the environment variable 'GNUPGHOME' has been set in
1588 which case its value will be used. Many kinds of data are stored
1589 within this directory.
1593 Outputs additional information while running. You can increase the
1594 verbosity by giving several verbose commands to DIRMNGR, such as
1598 Append all logging output to FILE. This is very helpful in seeing
1599 what the agent actually does. Use 'socket://' to log to socket.
1601 '--debug-level LEVEL'
1602 Select the debug level for investigating problems. LEVEL may be a
1603 numeric value or by a keyword:
1606 No debugging at all. A value of less than 1 may be used
1607 instead of the keyword.
1609 Some basic debug messages. A value between 1 and 2 may be
1610 used instead of the keyword.
1612 More verbose debug messages. A value between 3 and 5 may be
1613 used instead of the keyword.
1615 Even more detailed messages. A value between 6 and 8 may be
1616 used instead of the keyword.
1618 All of the debug messages you can get. A value greater than 8
1619 may be used instead of the keyword. The creation of hash
1620 tracing files is only enabled if the keyword is used.
1622 How these messages are mapped to the actual debugging flags is not
1623 specified and may change with newer releases of this program. They
1624 are however carefully selected to best aid in debugging.
1627 Set debugging flags. This option is only useful for debugging and
1628 its behavior may change with a new release. All flags are or-ed
1629 and may be given in C syntax (e.g. 0x0042) or as a comma separated
1630 list of flag names. To get a list of all supported flags the
1631 single word "help" can be used.
1634 Same as '--debug=0xffffffff'
1637 Enable debugging of the TLS layer at LEVEL. The details of the
1638 debug level depend on the used TLS library and are not set in
1642 When running in server mode, wait N seconds before entering the
1643 actual processing loop and print the pid. This gives time to
1646 '--disable-check-own-socket'
1647 On some platforms 'dirmngr' is able to detect the removal of its
1648 socket file and shutdown itself. This option disable this
1649 self-test for debugging purposes.
1655 Format the info output in daemon mode for use with the standard
1656 Bourne shell respective the C-shell. The default is to guess it
1657 based on the environment variable 'SHELL' which is in almost all
1661 Enabling this option forces loading of expired CRLs; this is only
1662 useful for debugging.
1666 The option '--use-tor' switches Dirmngr and thus GnuPG into "Tor
1667 mode" to route all network access via Tor (an anonymity network).
1668 Certain other features are disabled in this mode. The effect of
1669 '--use-tor' cannot be overridden by any other command or even by
1670 reloading dirmngr. The use of '--no-use-tor' disables the use of
1671 Tor. The default is to use Tor if it is available on startup or
1672 after reloading dirmngr. The test on the available of Tor is done
1673 by trying to connects to a SOCKS proxy at either port 9050 or
1674 9150); if another type of proxy is listening on one of these ports,
1675 you should use '--no-use-tor'.
1677 '--standard-resolver'
1678 This option forces the use of the system's standard DNS resolver
1679 code. This is mainly used for debugging. Note that on Windows a
1680 standard resolver is not used and all DNS access will return the
1681 error "Not Implemented" if this option is used. Using this
1682 together with enabled Tor mode returns the error "Not Enabled".
1684 '--recursive-resolver'
1685 When possible use a recursive resolver instead of a stub resolver.
1687 '--resolver-timeout N'
1688 Set the timeout for the DNS resolver to N seconds. The default are
1691 '--connect-timeout N'
1692 '--connect-quick-timeout N'
1693 Set the timeout for HTTP and generic TCP connection attempts to N
1694 seconds. The value set with the quick variant is used when the
1695 -quick option has been given to certain Assuan commands. The quick
1696 value is capped at the value of the regular connect timeout. The
1697 default values are 15 and 2 seconds. Note that the timeout values
1698 are for each connection attempt; the connection code will attempt
1699 to connect all addresses listed for a server.
1701 '--listen-backlog N'
1702 Set the size of the queue for pending connections. The default is
1705 '--allow-version-check'
1706 Allow Dirmngr to connect to 'https://versions.gnupg.org' to get the
1707 list of current software versions. If this option is enabled the
1708 list is retrieved in case the local copy does not exist or is older
1709 than 5 to 7 days. See the option '--query-swdb' of the command
1710 'gpgconf' for more details. Note, that regardless of this option a
1711 version check can always be triggered using this command:
1713 gpg-connect-agent --dirmngr 'loadswdb --force' /bye
1716 Use NAME as your keyserver. This is the server that 'gpg'
1717 communicates with to receive keys, send keys, and search for keys.
1718 The format of the NAME is a URI: 'scheme:[//]keyservername[:port]'
1719 The scheme is the type of keyserver: "hkp" for the HTTP (or
1720 compatible) keyservers, "ldap" for the LDAP keyservers, or "mailto"
1721 for the Graff email keyserver. Note that your particular
1722 installation of GnuPG may have other keyserver types available as
1723 well. Keyserver schemes are case-insensitive. After the keyserver
1724 name, optional keyserver configuration options may be provided.
1725 These are the same as the '--keyserver-options' of 'gpg', but apply
1726 only to this particular keyserver.
1728 Most keyservers synchronize with each other, so there is generally
1729 no need to send keys to more than one server. Somes keyservers use
1730 round robin DNS to give a different keyserver each time you use it.
1732 If exactly two keyservers are configured and only one is a Tor
1733 hidden service (.onion), Dirmngr selects the keyserver to use
1734 depending on whether Tor is locally running or not. The check for
1735 a running Tor is done for each new connection.
1737 If no keyserver is explicitly configured, dirmngr will use the
1738 built-in default of 'https://keyserver.ubuntu.com'.
1740 Windows users with a keyserver running on their Active Directory
1741 may use the short form 'ldap:///' for NAME to access this
1744 For accessing anonymous LDAP keyservers NAME is in general just a
1745 'ldaps://ldap.example.com'. A BaseDN parameter should never be
1746 specified. If authentication is required things are more
1747 complicated and two methods are available:
1749 The modern method (since version 2.2.28) is to use the very same
1750 syntax as used with the option '--ldapserver'. Please see over
1751 there for details; here is an example:
1753 keyserver ldap:ldap.example.com::uid=USERNAME,ou=GnuPG Users,
1754 dc=example,dc=com:PASSWORD::starttls
1756 The other method is to use a full URL for NAME; for example:
1758 keyserver ldaps://ldap.example.com/????bindname=uid=USERNAME
1759 %2Cou=GnuPG%20Users%2Cdc=example%2Cdc=com,password=PASSWORD
1761 Put this all on one line without any spaces and keep the '%2C' as
1762 given. Replace USERNAME, PASSWORD, and the 'dc' parts according to
1763 the instructions received from your LDAP administrator. Note that
1764 only simple authentication (i.e. cleartext passwords) is supported
1765 and thus using ldaps is strongly suggested (since 2.2.28 "ldaps"
1766 defaults to port 389 and uses STARTTLS). On Windows authentication
1767 via AD can be requested by adding 'gpgNtds=1' after the fourth
1768 question mark instead of the bindname and password parameter.
1770 '--nameserver IPADDR'
1771 In "Tor mode" Dirmngr uses a public resolver via Tor to resolve DNS
1772 names. If the default public resolver, which is '8.8.8.8', shall
1773 not be used a different one can be given using this option. Note
1774 that a numerical IP address must be given (IPv6 or IPv4) and that
1775 no error checking is done for IPADDR.
1779 Disable the use of all IPv4 or IPv6 addresses.
1782 Entirely disables the use of LDAP.
1785 Entirely disables the use of HTTP.
1788 When looking for the location of a CRL, the to be tested
1789 certificate usually contains so called "CRL Distribution Point"
1790 (DP) entries which are URLs describing the way to access the CRL.
1791 The first found DP entry is used. With this option all entries
1792 using the HTTP scheme are ignored when looking for a suitable DP.
1795 This is similar to '--ignore-http-dp' but ignores entries using the
1796 LDAP scheme. Both options may be combined resulting in ignoring
1799 '--ignore-ocsp-service-url'
1800 Ignore all OCSP URLs contained in the certificate. The effect is
1801 to force the use of the default responder.
1803 '--honor-http-proxy'
1804 If the environment variable 'http_proxy' has been set, use its
1805 value to access HTTP servers.
1807 '--http-proxy HOST[:PORT]'
1808 Use HOST and PORT to access HTTP servers. The use of this option
1809 overrides the environment variable 'http_proxy' regardless whether
1810 '--honor-http-proxy' has been set.
1812 '--ldap-proxy HOST[:PORT]'
1813 Use HOST and PORT to connect to LDAP servers. If PORT is omitted,
1814 port 389 (standard LDAP port) is used. This overrides any
1815 specified host and port part in a LDAP URL and will also be used if
1816 host and port have been omitted from the URL.
1819 Never use anything else but the LDAP "proxy" as configured with
1820 '--ldap-proxy'. Usually 'dirmngr' tries to use other configured
1821 LDAP server if the connection using the "proxy" failed.
1823 '--ldapserverlist-file FILE'
1824 Read the list of LDAP servers to consult for CRLs and X.509
1825 certificates from file instead of the default per-user ldap server
1826 list file. The default value for FILE is
1827 'dirmngr_ldapservers.conf'.
1829 This server list file contains one LDAP server per line in the
1832 HOSTNAME:PORT:USERNAME:PASSWORD:BASE_DN:FLAGS
1834 Lines starting with a '#' are comments.
1836 Note that as usual all strings entered are expected to be UTF-8
1837 encoded. Obviously this will lead to problems if the password has
1838 originally been encoded as Latin-1. There is no other solution
1839 here than to put such a password in the binary encoding into the
1840 file (i.e. non-ascii characters won't show up readable).(1)
1843 This is an alternative way to specify LDAP servers for CRL and
1844 X.509 certificate retrieval. If this option is used the servers
1845 configured in 'dirmngr_ldapservers.conf' (or the file given by
1846 '--ldapserverlist-file') are cleared. Note that
1847 'dirmngr_ldapservers.conf' is not read again by a reload signal.
1848 However, '--ldapserver' options are read again.
1850 SPEC is either a proper LDAP URL or a colon delimited list of the
1853 HOSTNAME:PORT:USERNAME:PASSWORD:BASE_DN:FLAGS:
1855 with an optional prefix of 'ldap:' (but without the two slashes
1856 which would turn this into a proper LDAP URL). FLAGS is a list of
1857 one or more comma delimited keywords:
1859 The default: Do not use a TLS secured connection at all; the
1860 default port is 389.
1862 Use STARTTLS to secure the connection; the default port is
1865 Tunnel LDAP through a TLS connection; the default port is 636.
1867 On Windows authenticate the LDAP connection using the Active
1868 Directory with the current user.
1870 Note that in an URL style specification the scheme 'ldaps://'
1871 refers to STARTTLS and _not_ to LDAP-over-TLS.
1873 '--ldaptimeout SECS'
1874 Specify the number of seconds to wait for an LDAP query before
1875 timing out. The default are 15 seconds. 0 will never timeout.
1878 This option makes dirmngr add any servers it discovers when
1879 validating certificates against CRLs to the internal list of
1880 servers to consult for certificates and CRLs.
1882 This option is useful when trying to validate a certificate that
1883 has a CRL distribution point that points to a server that is not
1884 already listed in the ldapserverlist. Dirmngr will always go to
1885 this server and try to download the CRL, but chances are high that
1886 the certificate used to sign the CRL is located on the same server.
1887 So if dirmngr doesn't add that new server to list, it will often
1888 not be able to verify the signature of the CRL unless the
1889 '--add-servers' option is used.
1891 Note: The current version of dirmngr has this option disabled by
1895 This option enables OCSP support if requested by the client.
1897 OCSP requests are rejected by default because they may violate the
1898 privacy of the user; for example it is possible to track the time
1899 when a user is reading a mail.
1901 '--ocsp-responder URL'
1902 Use URL as the default OCSP Responder if the certificate does not
1903 contain information about an assigned responder. Note, that
1904 '--ocsp-signer' must also be set to a valid certificate.
1906 '--ocsp-signer FPR|FILE'
1907 Use the certificate with the fingerprint FPR to check the responses
1908 of the default OCSP Responder. Alternatively a filename can be
1909 given in which case the response is expected to be signed by one of
1910 the certificates described in that file. Any argument which
1911 contains a slash, dot or tilde is considered a filename. Usual
1912 filename expansion takes place: A tilde at the start followed by a
1913 slash is replaced by the content of 'HOME', no slash at start
1914 describes a relative filename which will be searched at the home
1915 directory. To make sure that the FILE is searched in the home
1916 directory, either prepend the name with "./" or use a name which
1919 If a response has been signed by a certificate described by these
1920 fingerprints no further check upon the validity of this certificate
1923 The format of the FILE is a list of SHA-1 fingerprint, one per line
1924 with optional colons between the bytes. Empty lines and lines
1925 prefix with a hash mark are ignored.
1927 '--ocsp-max-clock-skew N'
1928 The number of seconds a skew between the OCSP responder and them
1929 local clock is accepted. Default is 600 (10 minutes).
1931 '--ocsp-max-period N'
1932 Seconds a response is at maximum considered valid after the time
1933 given in the thisUpdate field. Default is 7776000 (90 days).
1935 '--ocsp-current-period N'
1936 The number of seconds an OCSP response is considered valid after
1937 the time given in the NEXT_UPDATE datum. Default is 10800 (3
1941 Do not return more that N items in one query. The default is 10.
1943 '--ignore-cert-extension OID'
1944 Add OID to the list of ignored certificate extensions. The OID is
1945 expected to be in dotted decimal form, like '2.5.29.3'. This
1946 option may be used more than once. Critical flagged certificate
1947 extensions matching one of the OIDs in the list are treated as if
1948 they are actually handled and thus the certificate won't be
1949 rejected due to an unknown critical extension. Use this option
1950 with care because extensions are usually flagged as critical for a
1954 Use the root certificates in FILE for verification of the TLS
1955 certificates used with 'hkps' (keyserver access over TLS). If the
1956 file is in PEM format a suffix of '.pem' is expected for FILE.
1957 This option may be given multiple times to add more root
1958 certificates. Tilde expansion is supported.
1960 If no 'hkp-cacert' directive is present, dirmngr will use the
1963 ---------- Footnotes ----------
1965 (1) The 'gpgconf' tool might be helpful for frontends as it enables
1966 editing this configuration file using percent-escaped strings.
1969 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr Configuration, Next: Dirmngr Signals, Prev: Dirmngr Options, Up: Invoking DIRMNGR
1974 Dirmngr makes use of several directories when running in daemon mode:
1975 There are a few configuration files whih control the operation of
1976 dirmngr. By default they may all be found in the current home directory
1977 (*note option --homedir::).
1980 This is the standard configuration file read by 'dirmngr' on
1981 startup. It may contain any valid long option; the leading two
1982 dashes may not be entered and the option may not be abbreviated.
1983 This file is also read after a 'SIGHUP' however not all options
1984 will actually have an effect. This default name may be changed on
1985 the command line (*note option --options::). You should backup
1988 '/etc/gnupg/trusted-certs'
1989 This directory should be filled with certificates of Root CAs you
1990 are trusting in checking the CRLs and signing OCSP Responses.
1992 Usually these are the same certificates you use with the
1993 applications making use of dirmngr. It is expected that each of
1994 these certificate files contain exactly one DER encoded certificate
1995 in a file with the suffix '.crt' or '.der'. 'dirmngr' reads those
1996 certificates on startup and when given a SIGHUP. Certificates which
1997 are not readable or do not make up a proper X.509 certificate are
1998 ignored; see the log file for details.
2000 Applications using dirmngr (e.g. gpgsm) can request these
2001 certificates to complete a trust chain in the same way as with the
2002 extra-certs directory (see below).
2004 Note that for OCSP responses the certificate specified using the
2005 option '--ocsp-signer' is always considered valid to sign OCSP
2008 '/etc/gnupg/extra-certs'
2009 This directory may contain extra certificates which are preloaded
2010 into the internal cache on startup. Applications using dirmngr
2011 (e.g. gpgsm) can request cached certificates to complete a trust
2012 chain. This is convenient in cases you have a couple intermediate
2013 CA certificates or certificates usually used to sign OCSP
2014 responses. These certificates are first tried before going out to
2015 the net to look for them. These certificates must also be DER
2016 encoded and suffixed with '.crt' or '.der'.
2019 This directory is used to store cached CRLs. The 'crls.d' part
2020 will be created by dirmngr if it does not exists but you need to
2021 make sure that the upper directory exists.
2023 To be able to see what's going on you should create the configure
2024 file '~/gnupg/dirmngr.conf' with at least one line:
2026 log-file ~/dirmngr.log
2028 To be able to perform OCSP requests you probably want to add the
2033 To make sure that new options are read and that after the
2034 installation of a new GnuPG versions the installed dirmngr is running,
2035 you may want to kill an existing dirmngr first:
2037 gpgconf --kill dirmngr
2039 You may check the log file to see whether all desired root
2040 certificates have been loaded correctly.
2043 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr Signals, Next: Dirmngr Examples, Prev: Dirmngr Configuration, Up: Invoking DIRMNGR
2048 A running 'dirmngr' may be controlled by signals, i.e. using the 'kill'
2049 command to send a signal to the process.
2051 Here is a list of supported signals:
2054 This signal flushes all internally cached CRLs as well as any
2055 cached certificates. Then the certificate cache is reinitialized
2056 as on startup. Options are re-read from the configuration file.
2057 Instead of sending this signal it is better to use
2058 gpgconf --reload dirmngr
2061 Shuts down the process but waits until all current requests are
2062 fulfilled. If the process has received 3 of these signals and
2063 requests are still pending, a shutdown is forced. You may also use
2064 gpgconf --kill dirmngr
2065 instead of this signal
2068 Shuts down the process immediately.
2071 This prints some caching statistics to the log file.
2074 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr Examples, Next: Dirmngr Protocol, Prev: Dirmngr Signals, Up: Invoking DIRMNGR
2079 Here is an example on how to show dirmngr's internal table of OpenPGP
2080 keyserver addresses. The output is intended for debugging purposes and
2081 not part of a defined API.
2083 gpg-connect-agent --dirmngr 'keyserver --hosttable' /bye
2085 To inhibit the use of a particular host you have noticed in one of
2086 the keyserver pools, you may use
2088 gpg-connect-agent --dirmngr 'keyserver --dead pgpkeys.bnd.de' /bye
2090 The description of the 'keyserver' command can be printed using
2092 gpg-connect-agent --dirmngr 'help keyserver' /bye
2095 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr Protocol, Prev: Dirmngr Examples, Up: Invoking DIRMNGR
2097 3.6 Dirmngr's Assuan Protocol
2098 =============================
2100 Assuan is the IPC protocol used to access dirmngr. This is a
2101 description of the commands implemented by dirmngr.
2105 * Dirmngr LOOKUP:: Look up a certificate via LDAP
2106 * Dirmngr ISVALID:: Validate a certificate using a CRL or OCSP.
2107 * Dirmngr CHECKCRL:: Validate a certificate using a CRL.
2108 * Dirmngr CHECKOCSP:: Validate a certificate using OCSP.
2109 * Dirmngr CACHECERT:: Put a certificate into the internal cache.
2110 * Dirmngr VALIDATE:: Validate a certificate for debugging.
2113 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr LOOKUP, Next: Dirmngr ISVALID, Up: Dirmngr Protocol
2115 3.6.1 Return the certificate(s) found
2116 -------------------------------------
2118 Lookup certificate. To allow multiple patterns (which are ORed) quoting
2119 is required: Spaces are to be translated into "+" or into "%20";
2120 obviously this requires that the usual escape quoting rules are applied.
2121 The server responds with:
2123 S: D <DER encoded certificate>
2125 S: D <second DER encoded certificate>
2129 In this example 2 certificates are returned. The server may return
2130 any number of certificates; OK will also be returned when no
2131 certificates were found. The dirmngr might return a status line
2135 To indicate that the output was truncated to N items due to a
2136 limitation of the server or by an arbitrary set limit.
2138 The option '--url' may be used if instead of a search pattern a
2139 complete URL to the certificate is known:
2141 C: LOOKUP --url CN%3DWerner%20Koch,o%3DIntevation%20GmbH,c%3DDE?userCertificate
2143 If the option '--cache-only' is given, no external lookup is done so
2144 that only certificates from the cache are returned.
2146 With the option '--single', the first and only the first match will
2147 be returned. Unless option '--cache-only' is also used, no local lookup
2148 will be done in this case.
2151 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr ISVALID, Next: Dirmngr CHECKCRL, Prev: Dirmngr LOOKUP, Up: Dirmngr Protocol
2153 3.6.2 Validate a certificate using a CRL or OCSP
2154 ------------------------------------------------
2156 ISVALID [--only-ocsp] [--force-default-responder] CERTID|CERTFPR
2158 Check whether the certificate described by the CERTID has been
2159 revoked. Due to caching, the Dirmngr is able to answer immediately in
2162 The CERTID is a hex encoded string consisting of two parts, delimited
2163 by a single dot. The first part is the SHA-1 hash of the issuer name
2164 and the second part the serial number.
2166 Alternatively the certificate's SHA-1 fingerprint CERTFPR may be
2167 given in which case an OCSP request is done before consulting the CRL.
2168 If the option '--only-ocsp' is given, no fallback to a CRL check will be
2169 used. If the option '--force-default-responder' is given, only the
2170 default OCSP responder will be used and any other methods of obtaining
2171 an OCSP responder URL won't be used.
2173 Common return values are:
2175 'GPG_ERR_NO_ERROR (0)'
2176 This is the positive answer: The certificate is not revoked and we
2177 have an up-to-date revocation list for that certificate. If OCSP
2178 was used the responder confirmed that the certificate has not been
2181 'GPG_ERR_CERT_REVOKED'
2182 This is the negative answer: The certificate has been revoked.
2183 Either it is in a CRL and that list is up to date or an OCSP
2184 responder informed us that it has been revoked.
2186 'GPG_ERR_NO_CRL_KNOWN'
2187 No CRL is known for this certificate or the CRL is not valid or out
2191 The OCSP responder returned an "unknown" status. This means that
2192 it is not aware of the certificate's status.
2194 'GPG_ERR_NOT_SUPPORTED'
2195 This is commonly seen if OCSP support has not been enabled in the
2198 If DirMngr has not enough information about the given certificate
2199 (which is the case for not yet cached certificates), it will inquire the
2202 S: INQUIRE SENDCERT <CertID>
2203 C: D <DER encoded certificate>
2206 A client should be aware that DirMngr may ask for more than one
2209 If Dirmngr has a certificate but the signature of the certificate
2210 could not been validated because the root certificate is not known to
2211 dirmngr as trusted, it may ask back to see whether the client trusts
2212 this the root certificate:
2214 S: INQUIRE ISTRUSTED <CertHexfpr>
2218 Only this answer will let Dirmngr consider the certificate as valid.
2221 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr CHECKCRL, Next: Dirmngr CHECKOCSP, Prev: Dirmngr ISVALID, Up: Dirmngr Protocol
2223 3.6.3 Validate a certificate using a CRL
2224 ----------------------------------------
2226 Check whether the certificate with FINGERPRINT (SHA-1 hash of the entire
2227 X.509 certificate blob) is valid or not by consulting the CRL
2228 responsible for this certificate. If the fingerprint has not been given
2229 or the certificate is not known, the function inquires the certificate
2232 S: INQUIRE TARGETCERT
2233 C: D <DER encoded certificate>
2236 Thus the caller is expected to return the certificate for the request
2237 (which should match FINGERPRINT) as a binary blob. Processing then
2238 takes place without further interaction; in particular dirmngr tries to
2239 locate other required certificate by its own mechanism which includes a
2240 local certificate store as well as a list of trusted root certificates.
2242 The return code is 0 for success; i.e. the certificate has not been
2243 revoked or one of the usual error codes from libgpg-error.
2246 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr CHECKOCSP, Next: Dirmngr CACHECERT, Prev: Dirmngr CHECKCRL, Up: Dirmngr Protocol
2248 3.6.4 Validate a certificate using OCSP
2249 ---------------------------------------
2251 CHECKOCSP [--force-default-responder] [FINGERPRINT]
2253 Check whether the certificate with FINGERPRINT (the SHA-1 hash of the
2254 entire X.509 certificate blob) is valid by consulting the appropriate
2255 OCSP responder. If the fingerprint has not been given or the
2256 certificate is not known by Dirmngr, the function inquires the
2259 S: INQUIRE TARGETCERT
2260 C: D <DER encoded certificate>
2263 Thus the caller is expected to return the certificate for the request
2264 (which should match FINGERPRINT) as a binary blob. Processing then
2265 takes place without further interaction; in particular dirmngr tries to
2266 locate other required certificates by its own mechanism which includes a
2267 local certificate store as well as a list of trusted root certificates.
2269 If the option '--force-default-responder' is given, only the default
2270 OCSP responder is used. This option is the per-command variant of the
2271 global option '--ignore-ocsp-service-url'.
2273 The return code is 0 for success; i.e. the certificate has not been
2274 revoked or one of the usual error codes from libgpg-error.
2277 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr CACHECERT, Next: Dirmngr VALIDATE, Prev: Dirmngr CHECKOCSP, Up: Dirmngr Protocol
2279 3.6.5 Put a certificate into the internal cache
2280 -----------------------------------------------
2282 Put a certificate into the internal cache. This command might be useful
2283 if a client knows in advance certificates required for a test and wants
2284 to make sure they get added to the internal cache. It is also helpful
2285 for debugging. To get the actual certificate, this command immediately
2288 S: INQUIRE TARGETCERT
2289 C: D <DER encoded certificate>
2292 Thus the caller is expected to return the certificate for the request
2295 The return code is 0 for success; i.e. the certificate has not been
2296 successfully cached or one of the usual error codes from libgpg-error.
2299 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr VALIDATE, Prev: Dirmngr CACHECERT, Up: Dirmngr Protocol
2301 3.6.6 Validate a certificate for debugging
2302 ------------------------------------------
2304 Validate a certificate using the certificate validation function used
2305 internally by dirmngr. This command is only useful for debugging. To
2306 get the actual certificate, this command immediately inquires it using
2308 S: INQUIRE TARGETCERT
2309 C: D <DER encoded certificate>
2312 Thus the caller is expected to return the certificate for the request
2316 File: gnupg.info, Node: Invoking GPG, Next: Invoking GPGSM, Prev: Invoking DIRMNGR, Up: Top
2321 'gpg' is the OpenPGP part of the GNU Privacy Guard (GnuPG). It is a tool
2322 to provide digital encryption and signing services using the OpenPGP
2323 standard. 'gpg' features complete key management and all the bells and
2324 whistles you would expect from a full OpenPGP implementation.
2326 There are two main versions of GnuPG: GnuPG 1.x and GnuPG 2.x. GnuPG
2327 2.x supports modern encryption algorithms and thus should be preferred
2328 over GnuPG 1.x. You only need to use GnuPG 1.x if your platform doesn't
2329 support GnuPG 2.x, or you need support for some features that GnuPG 2.x
2330 has deprecated, e.g., decrypting data created with PGP-2 keys.
2332 If you are looking for version 1 of GnuPG, you may find that version
2333 installed under the name 'gpg1'.
2335 *Note Option Index::, for an index to 'gpg''s commands and options.
2339 * GPG Commands:: List of all commands.
2340 * GPG Options:: List of all options.
2341 * GPG Configuration:: Configuration files.
2342 * GPG Examples:: Some usage examples.
2344 Developer information:
2345 * Unattended Usage of GPG:: Using 'gpg' from other programs.
2348 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPG Commands, Next: GPG Options, Up: Invoking GPG
2353 Commands are not distinguished from options except for the fact that
2354 only one command is allowed. Generally speaking, irrelevant options are
2355 silently ignored, and may not be checked for correctness.
2357 'gpg' may be run with no commands. In this case it will print a
2358 warning perform a reasonable action depending on the type of file it is
2359 given as input (an encrypted message is decrypted, a signature is
2360 verified, a file containing keys is listed, etc.).
2362 If you run into any problems, please add the option '--verbose' to
2363 the invocation to see more diagnostics.
2367 * General GPG Commands:: Commands not specific to the functionality.
2368 * Operational GPG Commands:: Commands to select the type of operation.
2369 * OpenPGP Key Management:: How to manage your keys.
2372 File: gnupg.info, Node: General GPG Commands, Next: Operational GPG Commands, Up: GPG Commands
2374 4.1.1 Commands not specific to the function
2375 -------------------------------------------
2378 Print the program version and licensing information. Note that you
2379 cannot abbreviate this command.
2383 Print a usage message summarizing the most useful command-line
2384 options. Note that you cannot arbitrarily abbreviate this command
2385 (though you can use its short form '-h').
2388 Print warranty information.
2391 Print a list of all available options and commands. Note that you
2392 cannot abbreviate this command.
2395 File: gnupg.info, Node: Operational GPG Commands, Next: OpenPGP Key Management, Prev: General GPG Commands, Up: GPG Commands
2397 4.1.2 Commands to select the type of operation
2398 ----------------------------------------------
2402 Sign a message. This command may be combined with '--encrypt' (to
2403 sign and encrypt a message), '--symmetric' (to sign and
2404 symmetrically encrypt a message), or both '--encrypt' and
2405 '--symmetric' (to sign and encrypt a message that can be decrypted
2406 using a secret key or a passphrase). The signing key is chosen by
2407 default or can be set explicitly using the '--local-user' and
2408 '--default-key' options.
2412 Make a cleartext signature. The content in a cleartext signature
2413 is readable without any special software. OpenPGP software is only
2414 needed to verify the signature. cleartext signatures may modify
2415 end-of-line whitespace for platform independence and are not
2416 intended to be reversible. The signing key is chosen by default or
2417 can be set explicitly using the '--local-user' and '--default-key'
2422 Make a detached signature.
2426 Encrypt data to one or more public keys. This command may be
2427 combined with '--sign' (to sign and encrypt a message),
2428 '--symmetric' (to encrypt a message that can be decrypted using a
2429 secret key or a passphrase), or '--sign' and '--symmetric' together
2430 (for a signed message that can be decrypted using a secret key or a
2431 passphrase). '--recipient' and related options specify which
2432 public keys to use for encryption.
2436 Encrypt with a symmetric cipher using a passphrase. The default
2437 symmetric cipher used is AES-128, but may be chosen with the
2438 '--cipher-algo' option. This command may be combined with '--sign'
2439 (for a signed and symmetrically encrypted message), '--encrypt'
2440 (for a message that may be decrypted via a secret key or a
2441 passphrase), or '--sign' and '--encrypt' together (for a signed
2442 message that may be decrypted via a secret key or a passphrase).
2443 'gpg' caches the passphrase used for symmetric encryption so that a
2444 decrypt operation may not require that the user needs to enter the
2445 passphrase. The option '--no-symkey-cache' can be used to disable
2449 Store only (make a simple literal data packet).
2453 Decrypt the file given on the command line (or STDIN if no file is
2454 specified) and write it to STDOUT (or the file specified with
2455 '--output'). If the decrypted file is signed, the signature is
2456 also verified. This command differs from the default operation, as
2457 it never writes to the filename which is included in the file and
2458 it rejects files that don't begin with an encrypted message.
2461 Assume that the first argument is a signed file and verify it
2462 without generating any output. With no arguments, the signature
2463 packet is read from STDIN. If only one argument is given, the
2464 specified file is expected to include a complete signature.
2466 With more than one argument, the first argument should specify a
2467 file with a detached signature and the remaining files should
2468 contain the signed data. To read the signed data from STDIN, use
2469 '-' as the second filename. For security reasons, a detached
2470 signature will not read the signed material from STDIN if not
2471 explicitly specified.
2473 Note: If the option '--batch' is not used, 'gpg' may assume that a
2474 single argument is a file with a detached signature, and it will
2475 try to find a matching data file by stripping certain suffixes.
2476 Using this historical feature to verify a detached signature is
2477 strongly discouraged; you should always specify the data file
2480 Note: When verifying a cleartext signature, 'gpg' verifies only
2481 what makes up the cleartext signed data and not any extra data
2482 outside of the cleartext signature or the header lines directly
2483 following the dash marker line. The option '--output' may be used
2484 to write out the actual signed data, but there are other pitfalls
2485 with this format as well. It is suggested to avoid cleartext
2486 signatures in favor of detached signatures.
2488 Note: Sometimes the use of the 'gpgv' tool is easier than using the
2489 full-fledged 'gpg' with this option. 'gpgv' is designed to compare
2490 signed data against a list of trusted keys and returns with success
2491 only for a good signature. It has its own manual page.
2494 This modifies certain other commands to accept multiple files for
2495 processing on the command line or read from STDIN with each
2496 filename on a separate line. This allows for many files to be
2497 processed at once. '--multifile' may currently be used along with
2498 '--verify', '--encrypt', and '--decrypt'. Note that '--multifile
2499 --verify' may not be used with detached signatures.
2502 Identical to '--multifile --verify'.
2505 Identical to '--multifile --encrypt'.
2508 Identical to '--multifile --decrypt'.
2512 '--list-public-keys'
2513 List the specified keys. If no keys are specified, then all keys
2514 from the configured public keyrings are listed.
2516 Never use the output of this command in scripts or other programs.
2517 The output is intended only for humans and its format is likely to
2518 change. The '--with-colons' option emits the output in a stable,
2519 machine-parseable format, which is intended for use by scripts and
2522 '--list-secret-keys'
2524 List the specified secret keys. If no keys are specified, then all
2525 known secret keys are listed. A '#' after the initial tags 'sec'
2526 or 'ssb' means that the secret key or subkey is currently not
2527 usable. We also say that this key has been taken offline (for
2528 example, a primary key can be taken offline by exporting the key
2529 using the command '--export-secret-subkeys'). A '>' after these
2530 tags indicate that the key is stored on a smartcard. See also
2533 '--check-signatures'
2535 Same as '--list-keys', but the key signatures are verified and
2536 listed too. Note that for performance reasons the revocation
2537 status of a signing key is not shown. This command has the same
2538 effect as using '--list-keys' with '--with-sig-check'.
2540 The status of the verification is indicated by a flag directly
2541 following the "sig" tag (and thus before the flags described below.
2542 A "!" indicates that the signature has been successfully verified,
2543 a "-" denotes a bad signature and a "%" is used if an error
2544 occurred while checking the signature (e.g. a non supported
2545 algorithm). Signatures where the public key is not available are
2546 not listed; to see their keyids the command '--list-sigs' can be
2549 For each signature listed, there are several flags in between the
2550 signature status flag and keyid. These flags give additional
2551 information about each key signature. From left to right, they are
2552 the numbers 1-3 for certificate check level (see
2553 '--ask-cert-level'), "L" for a local or non-exportable signature
2554 (see '--lsign-key'), "R" for a nonRevocable signature (see the
2555 '--edit-key' command "nrsign"), "P" for a signature that contains a
2556 policy URL (see '--cert-policy-url'), "N" for a signature that
2557 contains a notation (see '--cert-notation'), "X" for an eXpired
2558 signature (see '--ask-cert-expire'), and the numbers 1-9 or "T" for
2559 10 and above to indicate trust signature levels (see the
2560 '--edit-key' command "tsign").
2563 '--locate-external-keys'
2564 Locate the keys given as arguments. This command basically uses
2565 the same algorithm as used when locating keys for encryption and
2566 may thus be used to see what keys 'gpg' might use. In particular
2567 external methods as defined by '--auto-key-locate' are used to
2568 locate a key if the arguments comain valid mail addresses. Only
2569 public keys are listed.
2571 The variant '--locate-external-keys' does not consider a locally
2572 existing key and can thus be used to force the refresh of a key via
2573 the defined external methods. If a fingerprint is given and and
2574 the methods defined by -auto-key-locate define LDAP servers, the
2575 key is fetched from these resources; defined non-LDAP keyservers
2579 This commands takes OpenPGP keys as input and prints information
2580 about them in the same way the command '--list-keys' does for
2581 locally stored key. In addition the list options
2582 'show-unusable-uids', 'show-unusable-subkeys', 'show-notations' and
2583 'show-policy-urls' are also enabled. As usual for automated
2584 processing, this command should be combined with the option
2588 List all keys (or the specified ones) along with their
2589 fingerprints. This is the same output as '--list-keys' but with
2590 the additional output of a line with the fingerprint. May also be
2591 combined with '--check-signatures'. If this command is given
2592 twice, the fingerprints of all secondary keys are listed too. This
2593 command also forces pretty printing of fingerprints if the keyid
2594 format has been set to "none".
2597 List only the sequence of packets. This command is only useful for
2598 debugging. When used with option '--verbose' the actual MPI values
2599 are dumped and not only their lengths. Note that the output of
2600 this command may change with new releases.
2604 Present a menu to work with a smartcard. The subcommand "help"
2605 provides an overview on available commands. For a detailed
2606 description, please see the Card HOWTO at
2607 https://gnupg.org/documentation/howtos.html#GnuPG-cardHOWTO .
2610 Show the content of the smart card.
2613 Present a menu to allow changing the PIN of a smartcard. This
2614 functionality is also available as the subcommand "passwd" with the
2615 '--edit-card' command.
2617 '--delete-keys NAME'
2618 Remove key from the public keyring. In batch mode either '--yes'
2619 is required or the key must be specified by fingerprint. This is a
2620 safeguard against accidental deletion of multiple keys. If the
2621 exclamation mark syntax is used with the fingerprint of a subkey
2622 only that subkey is deleted; if the exclamation mark is used with
2623 the fingerprint of the primary key the entire public key is
2626 '--delete-secret-keys NAME'
2627 Remove key from the secret keyring. In batch mode the key must be
2628 specified by fingerprint. The option '--yes' can be used to advise
2629 gpg-agent not to request a confirmation. This extra pre-caution is
2630 done because 'gpg' can't be sure that the secret key (as controlled
2631 by gpg-agent) is only used for the given OpenPGP public key. If
2632 the exclamation mark syntax is used with the fingerprint of a
2633 subkey only the secret part of that subkey is deleted; if the
2634 exclamation mark is used with the fingerprint of the primary key
2635 only the secret part of the primary key is deleted.
2637 '--delete-secret-and-public-key NAME'
2638 Same as '--delete-key', but if a secret key exists, it will be
2639 removed first. In batch mode the key must be specified by
2640 fingerprint. The option '--yes' can be used to advise gpg-agent
2641 not to request a confirmation.
2644 Either export all keys from all keyrings (default keyrings and
2645 those registered via option '--keyring'), or if at least one name
2646 is given, those of the given name. The exported keys are written
2647 to STDOUT or to the file given with option '--output'. Use
2648 together with '--armor' to mail those keys.
2650 '--send-keys KEYIDS'
2651 Similar to '--export' but sends the keys to a keyserver.
2652 Fingerprints may be used instead of key IDs. Don't send your
2653 complete keyring to a keyserver -- select only those keys which are
2654 new or changed by you. If no KEYIDS are given, 'gpg' does nothing.
2656 Take care: Keyservers are by design write only systems and thus it
2657 is not possible to ever delete keys once they have been send to a
2660 '--export-secret-keys'
2661 '--export-secret-subkeys'
2662 Same as '--export', but exports the secret keys instead. The
2663 exported keys are written to STDOUT or to the file given with
2664 option '--output'. This command is often used along with the
2665 option '--armor' to allow for easy printing of the key for paper
2666 backup; however the external tool 'paperkey' does a better job of
2667 creating backups on paper. Note that exporting a secret key can be
2668 a security risk if the exported keys are sent over an insecure
2671 The second form of the command has the special property to render
2672 the secret part of the primary key useless; this is a GNU extension
2673 to OpenPGP and other implementations can not be expected to
2674 successfully import such a key. Its intended use is in generating
2675 a full key with an additional signing subkey on a dedicated
2676 machine. This command then exports the key without the primary key
2677 to the main machine.
2679 GnuPG may ask you to enter the passphrase for the key. This is
2680 required, because the internal protection method of the secret key
2681 is different from the one specified by the OpenPGP protocol.
2684 This command is used to export a key in the OpenSSH public key
2685 format. It requires the specification of one key by the usual
2686 means and exports the latest valid subkey which has an
2687 authentication capability to STDOUT or to the file given with
2688 option '--output'. That output can directly be added to ssh's
2689 'authorized_key' file.
2691 By specifying the key to export using a key ID or a fingerprint
2692 suffixed with an exclamation mark (!), a specific subkey or the
2693 primary key can be exported. This does not even require that the
2694 key has the authentication capability flag set.
2698 Import/merge keys. This adds the given keys to the keyring. The
2699 fast version is currently just a synonym.
2701 There are a few other options which control how this command works.
2702 Most notable here is the '--import-options merge-only' option which
2703 does not insert new keys but does only the merging of new
2704 signatures, user-IDs and subkeys.
2706 '--receive-keys KEYIDS'
2707 '--recv-keys KEYIDS'
2708 Import the keys with the given KEYIDS from a keyserver.
2711 Request updates from a keyserver for keys that already exist on the
2712 local keyring. This is useful for updating a key with the latest
2713 signatures, user IDs, etc. Calling this with no arguments will
2714 refresh the entire keyring.
2716 '--search-keys NAMES'
2717 Search the keyserver for the given NAMES. Multiple names given
2718 here will be joined together to create the search string for the
2719 keyserver. Note that keyservers search for NAMES in a different
2720 and simpler way than gpg does. The best choice is to use a mail
2721 address. Due to data privacy reasons keyservers may even not even
2722 allow searching by user id or mail address and thus may only return
2723 results when being used with the '--recv-key' command to search by
2724 key fingerprint or keyid.
2727 Retrieve keys located at the specified URIS. Note that different
2728 installations of GnuPG may support different protocols (HTTP, FTP,
2729 LDAP, etc.). When using HTTPS the system provided root
2730 certificates are used by this command.
2733 Do trust database maintenance. This command iterates over all keys
2734 and builds the Web of Trust. This is an interactive command
2735 because it may have to ask for the "ownertrust" values for keys.
2736 The user has to give an estimation of how far she trusts the owner
2737 of the displayed key to correctly certify (sign) other keys. GnuPG
2738 only asks for the ownertrust value if it has not yet been assigned
2739 to a key. Using the '--edit-key' menu, the assigned value can be
2740 changed at any time.
2743 Do trust database maintenance without user interaction. From time
2744 to time the trust database must be updated so that expired keys or
2745 signatures and the resulting changes in the Web of Trust can be
2746 tracked. Normally, GnuPG will calculate when this is required and
2747 do it automatically unless '--no-auto-check-trustdb' is set. This
2748 command can be used to force a trust database check at any time.
2749 The processing is identical to that of '--update-trustdb' but it
2750 skips keys with a not yet defined "ownertrust".
2752 For use with cron jobs, this command can be used together with
2753 '--batch' in which case the trust database check is done only if a
2754 check is needed. To force a run even in batch mode add the option
2757 '--export-ownertrust'
2758 Send the ownertrust values to STDOUT. This is useful for backup
2759 purposes as these values are the only ones which can't be
2760 re-created from a corrupted trustdb. Example:
2761 gpg --export-ownertrust > otrust.txt
2763 '--import-ownertrust'
2764 Update the trustdb with the ownertrust values stored in 'files' (or
2765 STDIN if not given); existing values will be overwritten. In case
2766 of a severely damaged trustdb and if you have a recent backup of
2767 the ownertrust values (e.g. in the file 'otrust.txt'), you may
2768 re-create the trustdb using these commands:
2771 gpg --import-ownertrust < otrust.txt
2773 '--rebuild-keydb-caches'
2774 When updating from version 1.0.6 to 1.0.7 this command should be
2775 used to create signature caches in the keyring. It might be handy
2776 in other situations too.
2780 Print message digest of algorithm ALGO for all given files or
2781 STDIN. With the second form (or a deprecated "*" for ALGO) digests
2782 for all available algorithms are printed.
2784 '--gen-random 0|1|2 COUNT'
2785 Emit COUNT random bytes of the given quality level 0, 1 or 2. If
2786 COUNT is not given or zero, an endless sequence of random bytes
2787 will be emitted. If used with '--armor' the output will be base64
2788 encoded. PLEASE, don't use this command unless you know what you
2789 are doing; it may remove precious entropy from the system!
2791 '--gen-prime MODE BITS'
2792 Use the source, Luke :-). The output format is subject to change
2797 Pack or unpack an arbitrary input into/from an OpenPGP ASCII armor.
2798 This is a GnuPG extension to OpenPGP and in general not very
2801 '--tofu-policy {auto|good|unknown|bad|ask} KEYS'
2802 Set the TOFU policy for all the bindings associated with the
2803 specified KEYS. For more information about the meaning of the
2804 policies, *note trust-model-tofu::. The KEYS may be specified
2805 either by their fingerprint (preferred) or their keyid.
2808 File: gnupg.info, Node: OpenPGP Key Management, Prev: Operational GPG Commands, Up: GPG Commands
2810 4.1.3 How to manage your keys
2811 -----------------------------
2813 This section explains the main commands for key management.
2815 '--quick-generate-key USER-ID [ALGO [USAGE [EXPIRE]]]'
2817 This is a simple command to generate a standard key with one user
2818 id. In contrast to '--generate-key' the key is generated directly
2819 without the need to answer a bunch of prompts. Unless the option
2820 '--yes' is given, the key creation will be canceled if the given
2821 user id already exists in the keyring.
2823 If invoked directly on the console without any special options an
2824 answer to a "Continue?" style confirmation prompt is required. In
2825 case the user id already exists in the keyring a second prompt to
2826 force the creation of the key will show up.
2828 If ALGO or USAGE are given, only the primary key is created and no
2829 prompts are shown. To specify an expiration date but still create
2830 a primary and subkey use "default" or "future-default" for ALGO and
2831 "default" for USAGE. For a description of these optional arguments
2832 see the command '--quick-add-key'. The USAGE accepts also the
2833 value "cert" which can be used to create a certification only
2834 primary key; the default is to a create certification and signing
2837 The EXPIRE argument can be used to specify an expiration date for
2838 the key. Several formats are supported; commonly the ISO formats
2839 "YYYY-MM-DD" or "YYYYMMDDThhmmss" are used. To make the key expire
2840 in N seconds, N days, N weeks, N months, or N years use
2841 "seconds=N", "Nd", "Nw", "Nm", or "Ny" respectively. Not
2842 specifying a value, or using "-" results in a key expiring in a
2843 reasonable default interval. The values "never", "none" can be
2844 used for no expiration date.
2846 If this command is used with '--batch', '--pinentry-mode' has been
2847 set to 'loopback', and one of the passphrase options
2848 ('--passphrase', '--passphrase-fd', or '--passphrase-file') is
2849 used, the supplied passphrase is used for the new key and the agent
2850 does not ask for it. To create a key without any protection
2851 '--passphrase ''' may be used.
2853 To create an OpenPGP key from the keys available on the currently
2854 inserted smartcard, the special string "card" can be used for ALGO.
2855 If the card features an encryption and a signing key, gpg will
2856 figure them out and creates an OpenPGP key consisting of the usual
2857 primary key and one subkey. This works only with certain
2858 smartcards. Note that the interactive '--full-gen-key' command
2859 allows to do the same but with greater flexibility in the selection
2860 of the smartcard keys.
2862 Note that it is possible to create a primary key and a subkey using
2863 non-default algorithms by using "default" and changing the default
2864 parameters using the option '--default-new-key-algo'.
2866 '--quick-set-expire FPR EXPIRE [*|SUBFPRS]'
2867 With two arguments given, directly set the expiration time of the
2868 primary key identified by FPR to EXPIRE. To remove the expiration
2869 time '0' can be used. With three arguments and the third given as
2870 an asterisk, the expiration time of all non-revoked and not yet
2871 expired subkeys are set to EXPIRE. With more than two arguments
2872 and a list of fingerprints given for SUBFPRS, all non-revoked
2873 subkeys matching these fingerprints are set to EXPIRE.
2875 '--quick-add-key FPR [ALGO [USAGE [EXPIRE]]]'
2876 Directly add a subkey to the key identified by the fingerprint FPR.
2877 Without the optional arguments an encryption subkey is added. If
2878 any of the arguments are given a more specific subkey is added.
2880 ALGO may be any of the supported algorithms or curve names given in
2881 the format as used by key listings. To use the default algorithm
2882 the string "default" or "-" can be used. Supported algorithms are
2883 "rsa", "dsa", "elg", "ed25519", "cv25519", and other ECC curves.
2884 For example the string "rsa" adds an RSA key with the default key
2885 length; a string "rsa4096" requests that the key length is 4096
2886 bits. The string "future-default" is an alias for the algorithm
2887 which will likely be used as default algorithm in future versions
2888 of gpg. To list the supported ECC curves the command 'gpg
2889 --with-colons --list-config curve' can be used.
2891 Depending on the given ALGO the subkey may either be an encryption
2892 subkey or a signing subkey. If an algorithm is capable of signing
2893 and encryption and such a subkey is desired, a USAGE string must be
2894 given. This string is either "default" or "-" to keep the default
2895 or a comma delimited list (or space delimited list) of keywords:
2896 "sign" for a signing subkey, "auth" for an authentication subkey,
2897 and "encr" for an encryption subkey ("encrypt" can be used as alias
2898 for "encr"). The valid combinations depend on the algorithm.
2900 The EXPIRE argument can be used to specify an expiration date for
2901 the key. Several formats are supported; commonly the ISO formats
2902 "YYYY-MM-DD" or "YYYYMMDDThhmmss" are used. To make the key expire
2903 in N seconds, N days, N weeks, N months, or N years use
2904 "seconds=N", "Nd", "Nw", "Nm", or "Ny" respectively. Not
2905 specifying a value, or using "-" results in a key expiring in a
2906 reasonable default interval. The values "never", "none" can be
2907 used for no expiration date.
2911 Generate a new key pair using the current default parameters. This
2912 is the standard command to create a new key. In addition to the
2913 key a revocation certificate is created and stored in the
2914 'openpgp-revocs.d' directory below the GnuPG home directory.
2916 '--full-generate-key'
2918 Generate a new key pair with dialogs for all options. This is an
2919 extended version of '--generate-key'.
2921 There is also a feature which allows you to create keys in batch
2922 mode. See the manual section "Unattended key generation" on how to
2925 '--generate-revocation NAME'
2927 Generate a revocation certificate for the complete key. To only
2928 revoke a subkey or a key signature, use the '--edit' command.
2930 This command merely creates the revocation certificate so that it
2931 can be used to revoke the key if that is ever needed. To actually
2932 revoke a key the created revocation certificate needs to be merged
2933 with the key to revoke. This is done by importing the revocation
2934 certificate using the '--import' command. Then the revoked key
2935 needs to be published, which is best done by sending the key to a
2936 keyserver (command '--send-key') and by exporting ('--export') it
2937 to a file which is then send to frequent communication partners.
2939 '--generate-designated-revocation NAME'
2940 '--desig-revoke NAME'
2941 Generate a designated revocation certificate for a key. This
2942 allows a user (with the permission of the keyholder) to revoke
2946 Present a menu which enables you to do most of the key management
2947 related tasks. It expects the specification of a key on the
2951 Toggle selection of user ID or photographic user ID with index
2952 N. Use '*' to select all and '0' to deselect all.
2955 Toggle selection of subkey with index N or key ID N. Use '*'
2956 to select all and '0' to deselect all.
2959 Make a signature on key of user 'name'. If the key is not yet
2960 signed by the default user (or the users given with '-u'), the
2961 program displays the information of the key again, together
2962 with its fingerprint and asks whether it should be signed.
2963 This question is repeated for all users specified with '-u'.
2966 Same as "sign" but the signature is marked as non-exportable
2967 and will therefore never be used by others. This may be used
2968 to make keys valid only in the local environment.
2971 Same as "sign" but the signature is marked as non-revocable
2972 and can therefore never be revoked.
2975 Make a trust signature. This is a signature that combines the
2976 notions of certification (like a regular signature), and trust
2977 (like the "trust" command). It is generally only useful in
2978 distinct communities or groups. For more information please
2979 read the sections "Trust Signature" and "Regular Expression"
2982 Note that "l" (for local / non-exportable), "nr" (for
2983 non-revocable, and "t" (for trust) may be freely mixed and prefixed
2984 to "sign" to create a signature of any type desired.
2986 If the option '--only-sign-text-ids' is specified, then any
2987 non-text based user ids (e.g., photo IDs) will not be selected for
2991 Delete a signature. Note that it is not possible to retract a
2992 signature, once it has been send to the public (i.e. to a
2993 keyserver). In that case you better use 'revsig'.
2996 Revoke a signature. For every signature which has been
2997 generated by one of the secret keys, GnuPG asks whether a
2998 revocation certificate should be generated.
3001 Check the signatures on all selected user IDs. With the extra
3002 option 'selfsig' only self-signatures are shown.
3005 Create an additional user ID.
3008 Create a photographic user ID. This will prompt for a JPEG
3009 file that will be embedded into the user ID. Note that a very
3010 large JPEG will make for a very large key. Also note that
3011 some programs will display your JPEG unchanged (GnuPG), and
3012 some programs will scale it to fit in a dialog box (PGP).
3015 Display the selected photographic user ID.
3018 Delete a user ID or photographic user ID. Note that it is not
3019 possible to retract a user id, once it has been send to the
3020 public (i.e. to a keyserver). In that case you better use
3024 Revoke a user ID or photographic user ID.
3027 Flag the current user id as the primary one, removes the
3028 primary user id flag from all other user ids and sets the
3029 timestamp of all affected self-signatures one second ahead.
3030 Note that setting a photo user ID as primary makes it primary
3031 over other photo user IDs, and setting a regular user ID as
3032 primary makes it primary over other regular user IDs.
3035 Set a preferred keyserver for the specified user ID(s). This
3036 allows other users to know where you prefer they get your key
3037 from. See '--keyserver-options honor-keyserver-url' for more
3038 on how this works. Setting a value of "none" removes an
3039 existing preferred keyserver.
3042 Set a name=value notation for the specified user ID(s). See
3043 '--cert-notation' for more on how this works. Setting a value
3044 of "none" removes all notations, setting a notation prefixed
3045 with a minus sign (-) removes that notation, and setting a
3046 notation name (without the =value) prefixed with a minus sign
3047 removes all notations with that name.
3050 List preferences from the selected user ID. This shows the
3051 actual preferences, without including any implied preferences.
3054 More verbose preferences listing for the selected user ID.
3055 This shows the preferences in effect by including the implied
3056 preferences of 3DES (cipher), SHA-1 (digest), and Uncompressed
3057 (compression) if they are not already included in the
3058 preference list. In addition, the preferred keyserver and
3059 signature notations (if any) are shown.
3062 Set the list of user ID preferences to STRING for all (or just
3063 the selected) user IDs. Calling setpref with no arguments
3064 sets the preference list to the default (either built-in or
3065 set via '--default-preference-list'), and calling setpref with
3066 "none" as the argument sets an empty preference list. Use
3067 'gpg --version' to get a list of available algorithms. Note
3068 that while you can change the preferences on an attribute user
3069 ID (aka "photo ID"), GnuPG does not select keys via attribute
3070 user IDs so these preferences will not be used by GnuPG.
3072 When setting preferences, you should list the algorithms in
3073 the order which you'd like to see them used by someone else
3074 when encrypting a message to your key. If you don't include
3075 3DES, it will be automatically added at the end. Note that
3076 there are many factors that go into choosing an algorithm (for
3077 example, your key may not be the only recipient), and so the
3078 remote OpenPGP application being used to send to you may or
3079 may not follow your exact chosen order for a given message.
3080 It will, however, only choose an algorithm that is present on
3081 the preference list of every recipient key. See also the
3082 INTEROPERABILITY WITH OTHER OPENPGP PROGRAMS section below.
3085 Add a subkey to this key.
3088 Generate a subkey on a card and add it to this key.
3091 Transfer the selected secret subkey (or the primary key if no
3092 subkey has been selected) to a smartcard. The secret key in
3093 the keyring will be replaced by a stub if the key could be
3094 stored successfully on the card and you use the save command
3095 later. Only certain key types may be transferred to the card.
3096 A sub menu allows you to select on what card to store the key.
3097 Note that it is not possible to get that key back from the
3098 card - if the card gets broken your secret key will be lost
3099 unless you have a backup somewhere.
3102 Restore the given FILE to a card. This command may be used to
3103 restore a backup key (as generated during card initialization)
3104 to a new card. In almost all cases this will be the
3105 encryption key. You should use this command only with the
3106 corresponding public key and make sure that the file given as
3107 argument is indeed the backup to restore. You should then
3108 select 2 to restore as encryption key. You will first be
3109 asked to enter the passphrase of the backup key and then for
3110 the Admin PIN of the card.
3113 Remove a subkey (secondary key). Note that it is not possible
3114 to retract a subkey, once it has been send to the public (i.e.
3115 to a keyserver). In that case you better use 'revkey'. Also
3116 note that this only deletes the public part of a key.
3122 Change the key or subkey expiration time. If a subkey is
3123 selected, the expiration time of this subkey will be changed.
3124 With no selection, the key expiration of the primary key is
3128 Change the owner trust value for the key. This updates the
3129 trust-db immediately and no save is required.
3133 Disable or enable an entire key. A disabled key can not
3134 normally be used for encryption.
3137 Add a designated revoker to the key. This takes one optional
3138 argument: "sensitive". If a designated revoker is marked as
3139 sensitive, it will not be exported by default (see
3143 Change the passphrase of the secret key.
3146 This is dummy command which exists only for backward
3150 Compact (by removing all signatures except the selfsig) any
3151 user ID that is no longer usable (e.g. revoked, or expired).
3152 Then, remove any signatures that are not usable by the trust
3153 calculations. Specifically, this removes any signature that
3154 does not validate, any signature that is superseded by a later
3155 signature, revoked signatures, and signatures issued by keys
3156 that are not present on the keyring.
3159 Make the key as small as possible. This removes all
3160 signatures from each user ID except for the most recent
3164 Change the usage flags (capabilities) of the primary key or of
3165 subkeys. These usage flags (e.g. Certify, Sign,
3166 Authenticate, Encrypt) are set during key creation. Sometimes
3167 it is useful to have the opportunity to change them (for
3168 example to add Authenticate) after they have been created.
3169 Please take care when doing this; the allowed usage flags
3170 depend on the key algorithm.
3173 Add cross-certification signatures to signing subkeys that may
3174 not currently have them. Cross-certification signatures
3175 protect against a subtle attack against signing subkeys. See
3176 '--require-cross-certification'. All new keys generated have
3177 this signature by default, so this command is only useful to
3178 bring older keys up to date.
3181 Save all changes to the keyrings and quit.
3184 Quit the program without updating the keyrings.
3186 The listing shows you the key with its secondary keys and all user
3187 IDs. The primary user ID is indicated by a dot, and selected keys
3188 or user IDs are indicated by an asterisk. The trust value is
3189 displayed with the primary key: "trust" is the assigned owner trust
3190 and "validity" is the calculated validity of the key. Validity
3191 values are also displayed for all user IDs. For possible values of
3192 trust, *note trust-values::.
3195 Signs a public key with your secret key. This is a shortcut
3196 version of the subcommand "sign" from '--edit'.
3199 Signs a public key with your secret key but marks it as
3200 non-exportable. This is a shortcut version of the subcommand
3201 "lsign" from '--edit-key'.
3203 '--quick-sign-key FPR [NAMES]'
3204 '--quick-lsign-key FPR [NAMES]'
3205 Directly sign a key from the passphrase without any further user
3206 interaction. The FPR must be the verified primary fingerprint of a
3207 key in the local keyring. If no NAMES are given, all useful user
3208 ids are signed; with given [NAMES] only useful user ids matching
3209 one of theses names are signed. By default, or if a name is
3210 prefixed with a '*', a case insensitive substring match is used.
3211 If a name is prefixed with a '=' a case sensitive exact match is
3214 The command '--quick-lsign-key' marks the signatures as
3215 non-exportable. If such a non-exportable signature already exists
3216 the '--quick-sign-key' turns it into a exportable signature. If
3217 you need to update an existing signature, for example to add or
3218 change notation data, you need to use the option
3221 This command uses reasonable defaults and thus does not provide the
3222 full flexibility of the "sign" subcommand from '--edit-key'. Its
3223 intended use is to help unattended key signing by utilizing a list
3224 of verified fingerprints.
3226 '--quick-add-uid USER-ID NEW-USER-ID'
3227 This command adds a new user id to an existing key. In contrast to
3228 the interactive sub-command 'adduid' of '--edit-key' the
3229 NEW-USER-ID is added verbatim with only leading and trailing white
3230 space removed, it is expected to be UTF-8 encoded, and no checks on
3231 its form are applied.
3233 '--quick-revoke-uid USER-ID USER-ID-TO-REVOKE'
3234 This command revokes a user ID on an existing key. It cannot be
3235 used to revoke the last user ID on key (some non-revoked user ID
3236 must remain), with revocation reason "User ID is no longer valid".
3237 If you want to specify a different revocation reason, or to supply
3238 supplementary revocation text, you should use the interactive
3239 sub-command 'revuid' of '--edit-key'.
3241 '--quick-revoke-sig FPR SIGNING-FPR [NAMES]'
3242 This command revokes the key signatures made by SIGNING-FPR from
3243 the key specified by the fingerprint FPR. With NAMES given only
3244 the signatures on user ids of the key matching any of the given
3245 names are affected (see '--quick-sign-key'). If a revocation
3246 already exists a notice is printed instead of creating a new
3247 revocation; no error is returned in this case. Note that key
3248 signature revocations may be superseded by a newer key signature
3249 and in turn again revoked.
3251 '--quick-set-primary-uid USER-ID PRIMARY-USER-ID'
3252 This command sets or updates the primary user ID flag on an
3253 existing key. USER-ID specifies the key and PRIMARY-USER-ID the
3254 user ID which shall be flagged as the primary user ID. The primary
3255 user ID flag is removed from all other user ids and the timestamp
3256 of all affected self-signatures is set one second ahead.
3258 '--change-passphrase USER-ID'
3260 Change the passphrase of the secret key belonging to the
3261 certificate specified as USER-ID. This is a shortcut for the
3262 sub-command 'passwd' of the edit key menu. When using together
3263 with the option '--dry-run' this will not actually change the
3264 passphrase but check that the current passphrase is correct.
3267 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPG Options, Next: GPG Configuration, Prev: GPG Commands, Up: Invoking GPG
3272 'gpg' features a bunch of options to control the exact behaviour and to
3273 change the default configuration.
3277 * GPG Configuration Options:: How to change the configuration.
3278 * GPG Key related Options:: Key related options.
3279 * GPG Input and Output:: Input and Output.
3280 * OpenPGP Options:: OpenPGP protocol specific options.
3281 * Compliance Options:: Compliance options.
3282 * GPG Esoteric Options:: Doing things one usually doesn't want to do.
3283 * Deprecated Options:: Deprecated options.
3285 Long options can be put in an options file (default
3286 "~/.gnupg/gpg.conf"). Short option names will not work - for example,
3287 "armor" is a valid option for the options file, while "a" is not. Do
3288 not write the 2 dashes, but simply the name of the option and any
3289 required arguments. Lines with a hash ('#') as the first
3290 non-white-space character are ignored. Commands may be put in this file
3291 too, but that is not generally useful as the command will execute
3292 automatically with every execution of gpg.
3294 Please remember that option parsing stops as soon as a non-option is
3295 encountered, you can explicitly stop parsing by using the special option
3299 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPG Configuration Options, Next: GPG Key related Options, Up: GPG Options
3301 4.2.1 How to change the configuration
3302 -------------------------------------
3304 These options are used to change the configuration and most of them are
3305 usually found in the option file.
3307 '--default-key NAME'
3308 Use NAME as the default key to sign with. If this option is not
3309 used, the default key is the first key found in the secret keyring.
3310 Note that '-u' or '--local-user' overrides this option. This
3311 option may be given multiple times. In this case, the last key for
3312 which a secret key is available is used. If there is no secret key
3313 available for any of the specified values, GnuPG will not emit an
3314 error message but continue as if this option wasn't given.
3316 '--default-recipient NAME'
3317 Use NAME as default recipient if option '--recipient' is not used
3318 and don't ask if this is a valid one. NAME must be non-empty.
3320 '--default-recipient-self'
3321 Use the default key as default recipient if option '--recipient' is
3322 not used and don't ask if this is a valid one. The default key is
3323 the first one from the secret keyring or the one set with
3326 '--no-default-recipient'
3327 Reset '--default-recipient' and '--default-recipient-self'. Should
3328 not be used in an option file.
3331 Give more information during processing. If used twice, the input
3332 data is listed in detail.
3335 Reset verbose level to 0. Should not be used in an option file.
3338 Try to be as quiet as possible. Should not be used in an option
3343 Use batch mode. Never ask, do not allow interactive commands.
3344 '--no-batch' disables this option. Note that even with a filename
3345 given on the command line, gpg might still need to read from STDIN
3346 (in particular if gpg figures that the input is a detached
3347 signature and no data file has been specified). Thus if you do not
3348 want to feed data via STDIN, you should connect STDIN to
3351 It is highly recommended to use this option along with the options
3352 '--status-fd' and '--with-colons' for any unattended use of 'gpg'.
3353 Should not be used in an option file.
3356 Make sure that the TTY (terminal) is never used for any output.
3357 This option is needed in some cases because GnuPG sometimes prints
3358 warnings to the TTY even if '--batch' is used.
3361 Assume "yes" on most questions. Should not be used in an option
3365 Assume "no" on most questions. Should not be used in an option
3368 '--list-options PARAMETERS'
3369 This is a space or comma delimited string that gives options used
3370 when listing keys and signatures (that is, '--list-keys',
3371 '--check-signatures', '--list-public-keys', '--list-secret-keys',
3372 and the '--edit-key' functions). Options can be prepended with a
3373 'no-' (after the two dashes) to give the opposite meaning. The
3377 Causes '--list-keys', '--check-signatures',
3378 '--list-public-keys', and '--list-secret-keys' to display any
3379 photo IDs attached to the key. Defaults to no. See also
3380 '--photo-viewer'. Does not work with '--with-colons': see
3381 '--attribute-fd' for the appropriate way to get photo data for
3382 scripts and other frontends.
3385 Show usage information for keys and subkeys in the standard
3386 key listing. This is a list of letters indicating the allowed
3387 usage for a key ('E'=encryption, 'S'=signing,
3388 'C'=certification, 'A'=authentication). Defaults to yes.
3391 Show policy URLs in the '--check-signatures' listings.
3397 Show all, IETF standard, or user-defined signature notations
3398 in the '--check-signatures' listings. Defaults to no.
3401 Show any preferred keyserver URL in the '--check-signatures'
3402 listings. Defaults to no.
3405 Display the calculated validity of user IDs during key
3406 listings. Defaults to yes.
3409 Show revoked and expired user IDs in key listings. Defaults
3412 show-unusable-subkeys
3413 Show revoked and expired subkeys in key listings. Defaults to
3417 Display the keyring name at the head of key listings to show
3418 which keyring a given key resides on. Defaults to no.
3421 Show signature expiration dates (if any) during
3422 '--check-signatures' listings. Defaults to no.
3425 Include signature subpackets in the key listing. This option
3426 can take an optional argument list of the subpackets to list.
3427 If no argument is passed, list all subpackets. Defaults to
3428 no. This option is only meaningful when using '--with-colons'
3429 along with '--check-signatures'.
3432 For each user-id which has a valid mail address print only the
3433 fingerprint followed by the mail address.
3435 '--verify-options PARAMETERS'
3436 This is a space or comma delimited string that gives options used
3437 when verifying signatures. Options can be prepended with a 'no-'
3438 to give the opposite meaning. The options are:
3441 Display any photo IDs present on the key that issued the
3442 signature. Defaults to no. See also '--photo-viewer'.
3445 Show policy URLs in the signature being verified. Defaults to
3451 Show all, IETF standard, or user-defined signature notations
3452 in the signature being verified. Defaults to IETF standard.
3455 Show any preferred keyserver URL in the signature being
3456 verified. Defaults to yes.
3459 Display the calculated validity of the user IDs on the key
3460 that issued the signature. Defaults to yes.
3463 Show revoked and expired user IDs during signature
3464 verification. Defaults to no.
3466 show-primary-uid-only
3467 Show only the primary user ID during signature verification.
3468 That is all the AKA lines as well as photo Ids are not shown
3469 with the signature verification status.
3472 Enable PKA lookups to verify sender addresses. Note that PKA
3473 is based on DNS, and so enabling this option may disclose
3474 information on when and what signatures are verified or to
3475 whom data is encrypted. This is similar to the "web bug"
3476 described for the '--auto-key-retrieve' option.
3479 Raise the trust in a signature to full if the signature passes
3480 PKA validation. This option is only meaningful if pka-lookups
3483 '--enable-large-rsa'
3484 '--disable-large-rsa'
3485 With -generate-key and -batch, enable the creation of RSA secret
3486 keys as large as 8192 bit. Note: 8192 bit is more than is
3487 generally recommended. These large keys don't significantly
3488 improve security, but they are more expensive to use, and their
3489 signatures and certifications are larger. This option is only
3490 available if the binary was build with large-secmem support.
3494 Enable hash truncation for all DSA keys even for old DSA Keys up to
3495 1024 bit. This is also the default with '--openpgp'. Note that
3496 older versions of GnuPG also required this flag to allow the
3497 generation of DSA larger than 1024 bit.
3499 '--photo-viewer STRING'
3500 This is the command line that should be run to view a photo ID.
3501 "%i" will be expanded to a filename containing the photo. "%I"
3502 does the same, except the file will not be deleted once the viewer
3503 exits. Other flags are "%k" for the key ID, "%K" for the long key
3504 ID, "%f" for the key fingerprint, "%t" for the extension of the
3505 image type (e.g. "jpg"), "%T" for the MIME type of the image (e.g.
3506 "image/jpeg"), "%v" for the single-character calculated validity of
3507 the image being viewed (e.g. "f"), "%V" for the calculated
3508 validity as a string (e.g. "full"), "%U" for a base32 encoded hash
3509 of the user ID, and "%%" for an actual percent sign. If neither %i
3510 or %I are present, then the photo will be supplied to the viewer on
3513 On Unix the default viewer is 'xloadimage -fork -quiet -title
3514 'KeyID 0x%k' STDIN' with a fallback to 'display -title 'KeyID 0x%k'
3515 %i' and finally to 'xdg-open %i'. On Windows '!ShellExecute 400
3516 %i' is used; here the command is a meta command to use that API
3517 call followed by a wait time in milliseconds which is used to give
3518 the viewer time to read the temporary image file before gpg deletes
3519 it again. Note that if your image viewer program is not secure,
3520 then executing it from gpg does not make it secure.
3522 '--exec-path STRING'
3523 Sets a list of directories to search for photo viewers If not
3524 provided photo viewers use the 'PATH' environment variable.
3527 Add FILE to the current list of keyrings. If FILE begins with a
3528 tilde and a slash, these are replaced by the $HOME directory. If
3529 the filename does not contain a slash, it is assumed to be in the
3530 GnuPG home directory ("~/.gnupg" if '--homedir' or $GNUPGHOME is
3533 Note that this adds a keyring to the current list. If the intent
3534 is to use the specified keyring alone, use '--keyring' along with
3535 '--no-default-keyring'.
3537 If the option '--no-keyring' has been used no keyrings will be used
3540 '--secret-keyring FILE'
3541 This is an obsolete option and ignored. All secret keys are stored
3542 in the 'private-keys-v1.d' directory below the GnuPG home
3545 '--primary-keyring FILE'
3546 Designate FILE as the primary public keyring. This means that
3547 newly imported keys (via '--import' or keyserver '--recv-from')
3548 will go to this keyring.
3550 '--trustdb-name FILE'
3551 Use FILE instead of the default trustdb. If FILE begins with a
3552 tilde and a slash, these are replaced by the $HOME directory. If
3553 the filename does not contain a slash, it is assumed to be in the
3554 GnuPG home directory ('~/.gnupg' if '--homedir' or $GNUPGHOME is
3558 Set the name of the home directory to DIR. If this option is not
3559 used, the home directory defaults to '~/.gnupg'. It is only
3560 recognized when given on the command line. It also overrides any
3561 home directory stated through the environment variable 'GNUPGHOME'
3562 or (on Windows systems) by means of the Registry entry
3563 HKCU\SOFTWARE\GNU\GNUPG:HOMEDIR.
3565 On Windows systems it is possible to install GnuPG as a portable
3566 application. In this case only this command line option is
3567 considered, all other ways to set a home directory are ignored.
3569 To install GnuPG as a portable application under Windows, create an
3570 empty file named 'gpgconf.ctl' in the same directory as the tool
3571 'gpgconf.exe'. The root of the installation is then that
3572 directory; or, if 'gpgconf.exe' has been installed directly below a
3573 directory named 'bin', its parent directory. You also need to make
3574 sure that the following directories exist and are writable:
3575 'ROOT/home' for the GnuPG home and 'ROOT/usr/local/var/cache/gnupg'
3576 for internal cache files.
3578 '--display-charset NAME'
3579 Set the name of the native character set. This is used to convert
3580 some informational strings like user IDs to the proper UTF-8
3581 encoding. Note that this has nothing to do with the character set
3582 of data to be encrypted or signed; GnuPG does not recode
3583 user-supplied data. If this option is not used, the default
3584 character set is determined from the current locale. A verbosity
3585 level of 3 shows the chosen set. This option should not be used on
3586 Windows. Valid values for NAME are:
3589 This is the Latin 1 set.
3595 This is currently an alias for the Latin 1 set.
3598 The usual Russian set (RFC-1489).
3601 Bypass all translations and assume that the OS uses native
3606 Assume that command line arguments are given as UTF-8 strings. The
3607 default ('--no-utf8-strings') is to assume that arguments are
3608 encoded in the character set as specified by '--display-charset'.
3609 These options affect all following arguments. Both options may be
3610 used multiple times. This option should not be used in an option
3613 This option has no effect on Windows. There the internal used
3614 UTF-8 encoding is translated for console input and output. The
3615 command line arguments are expected as Unicode and translated to
3616 UTF-8. Thus when calling this program from another, make sure to
3617 use the Unicode version of CreateProcess.
3620 Read options from FILE and do not try to read them from the default
3621 options file in the homedir (see '--homedir'). This option is
3622 ignored if used in an options file.
3625 Shortcut for '--options /dev/null'. This option is detected before
3626 an attempt to open an option file. Using this option will also
3627 prevent the creation of a '~/.gnupg' homedir.
3630 '--compress-level N'
3631 '--bzip2-compress-level N'
3632 Set compression level to N for the ZIP and ZLIB compression
3633 algorithms. The default is to use the default compression level of
3634 zlib (normally 6). '--bzip2-compress-level' sets the compression
3635 level for the BZIP2 compression algorithm (defaulting to 6 as
3636 well). This is a different option from '--compress-level' since
3637 BZIP2 uses a significant amount of memory for each additional
3638 compression level. '-z' sets both. A value of 0 for N disables
3641 '--bzip2-decompress-lowmem'
3642 Use a different decompression method for BZIP2 compressed files.
3643 This alternate method uses a bit more than half the memory, but
3644 also runs at half the speed. This is useful under extreme low
3645 memory circumstances when the file was originally compressed at a
3646 high '--bzip2-compress-level'.
3648 '--mangle-dos-filenames'
3649 '--no-mangle-dos-filenames'
3650 Older version of Windows cannot handle filenames with more than one
3651 dot. '--mangle-dos-filenames' causes GnuPG to replace (rather than
3652 add to) the extension of an output filename to avoid this problem.
3653 This option is off by default and has no effect on non-Windows
3657 '--no-ask-cert-level'
3658 When making a key signature, prompt for a certification level. If
3659 this option is not specified, the certification level used is set
3660 via '--default-cert-level'. See '--default-cert-level' for
3661 information on the specific levels and how they are used.
3662 '--no-ask-cert-level' disables this option. This option defaults
3665 '--default-cert-level N'
3666 The default to use for the check level when signing a key.
3668 0 means you make no particular claim as to how carefully you
3671 1 means you believe the key is owned by the person who claims to
3672 own it but you could not, or did not verify the key at all. This
3673 is useful for a "persona" verification, where you sign the key of a
3676 2 means you did casual verification of the key. For example, this
3677 could mean that you verified the key fingerprint and checked the
3678 user ID on the key against a photo ID.
3680 3 means you did extensive verification of the key. For example,
3681 this could mean that you verified the key fingerprint with the
3682 owner of the key in person, and that you checked, by means of a
3683 hard to forge document with a photo ID (such as a passport) that
3684 the name of the key owner matches the name in the user ID on the
3685 key, and finally that you verified (by exchange of email) that the
3686 email address on the key belongs to the key owner.
3688 Note that the examples given above for levels 2 and 3 are just
3689 that: examples. In the end, it is up to you to decide just what
3690 "casual" and "extensive" mean to you.
3692 This option defaults to 0 (no particular claim).
3695 When building the trust database, treat any signatures with a
3696 certification level below this as invalid. Defaults to 2, which
3697 disregards level 1 signatures. Note that level 0 "no particular
3698 claim" signatures are always accepted.
3700 '--trusted-key LONG KEY ID OR FINGERPRINT'
3701 Assume that the specified key (which should be given as
3702 fingerprint) is as trustworthy as one of your own secret keys.
3703 This option is useful if you don't want to keep your secret keys
3704 (or one of them) online but still want to be able to check the
3705 validity of a given recipient's or signator's key. If the given
3706 key is not locally available but an LDAP keyserver is configured
3707 the missing key is imported from that server.
3709 '--trust-model {pgp|classic|tofu|tofu+pgp|direct|always|auto}'
3710 Set what trust model GnuPG should follow. The models are:
3713 This is the Web of Trust combined with trust signatures as
3714 used in PGP 5.x and later. This is the default trust model
3715 when creating a new trust database.
3718 This is the standard Web of Trust as introduced by PGP 2.
3721 TOFU stands for Trust On First Use. In this trust model, the
3722 first time a key is seen, it is memorized. If later another
3723 key with a user id with the same email address is seen, both
3724 keys are marked as suspect. In that case, the next time
3725 either is used, a warning is displayed describing the
3726 conflict, why it might have occurred (either the user
3727 generated a new key and failed to cross sign the old and new
3728 keys, the key is forgery, or a man-in-the-middle attack is
3729 being attempted), and the user is prompted to manually confirm
3730 the validity of the key in question.
3732 Because a potential attacker is able to control the email
3733 address and thereby circumvent the conflict detection
3734 algorithm by using an email address that is similar in
3735 appearance to a trusted email address, whenever a message is
3736 verified, statistics about the number of messages signed with
3737 the key are shown. In this way, a user can easily identify
3738 attacks using fake keys for regular correspondents.
3740 When compared with the Web of Trust, TOFU offers significantly
3741 weaker security guarantees. In particular, TOFU only helps
3742 ensure consistency (that is, that the binding between a key
3743 and email address doesn't change). A major advantage of TOFU
3744 is that it requires little maintenance to use correctly. To
3745 use the web of trust properly, you need to actively sign keys
3746 and mark users as trusted introducers. This is a
3747 time-consuming process and anecdotal evidence suggests that
3748 even security-conscious users rarely take the time to do this
3749 thoroughly and instead rely on an ad-hoc TOFU process.
3751 In the TOFU model, policies are associated with bindings
3752 between keys and email addresses (which are extracted from
3753 user ids and normalized). There are five policies, which can
3754 be set manually using the '--tofu-policy' option. The default
3755 policy can be set using the '--tofu-default-policy' option.
3757 The TOFU policies are: 'auto', 'good', 'unknown', 'bad' and
3758 'ask'. The 'auto' policy is used by default (unless
3759 overridden by '--tofu-default-policy') and marks a binding as
3760 marginally trusted. The 'good', 'unknown' and 'bad' policies
3761 mark a binding as fully trusted, as having unknown trust or as
3762 having trust never, respectively. The 'unknown' policy is
3763 useful for just using TOFU to detect conflicts, but to never
3764 assign positive trust to a binding. The final policy, 'ask'
3765 prompts the user to indicate the binding's trust. If batch
3766 mode is enabled (or input is inappropriate in the context),
3767 then the user is not prompted and the 'undefined' trust level
3771 This trust model combines TOFU with the Web of Trust. This is
3772 done by computing the trust level for each model and then
3773 taking the maximum trust level where the trust levels are
3774 ordered as follows: 'unknown < undefined < marginal < fully <
3775 ultimate < expired < never'.
3777 By setting '--tofu-default-policy=unknown', this model can be
3778 used to implement the web of trust with TOFU's conflict
3779 detection algorithm, but without its assignment of positive
3780 trust values, which some security-conscious users don't like.
3783 Key validity is set directly by the user and not calculated
3784 via the Web of Trust. This model is solely based on the key
3785 and does not distinguish user IDs. Note that when changing to
3786 another trust model the trust values assigned to a key are
3787 transformed into ownertrust values, which also indicate how
3788 you trust the owner of the key to sign other keys.
3791 Skip key validation and assume that used keys are always fully
3792 valid. You generally won't use this unless you are using some
3793 external validation scheme. This option also suppresses the
3794 "[uncertain]" tag printed with signature checks when there is
3795 no evidence that the user ID is bound to the key. Note that
3796 this trust model still does not allow the use of expired,
3797 revoked, or disabled keys.
3800 Select the trust model depending on whatever the internal
3801 trust database says. This is the default model if such a
3802 database already exists. Note that a tofu trust model is not
3803 considered here and must be enabled explicitly.
3805 '--auto-key-locate MECHANISMS'
3806 '--no-auto-key-locate'
3807 GnuPG can automatically locate and retrieve keys as needed using
3808 this option. This happens when encrypting to an email address (in
3809 the "user@example.com" form), and there are no "user@example.com"
3810 keys on the local keyring. This option takes any number of the
3811 mechanisms listed below, in the order they are to be tried.
3812 Instead of listing the mechanisms as comma delimited arguments, the
3813 option may also be given several times to add more mechanism. The
3814 option '--no-auto-key-locate' or the mechanism "clear" resets the
3815 list. The default is "local,wkd".
3818 Locate a key using DNS CERT, as specified in RFC-4398.
3821 Locate a key using DNS PKA.
3824 Locate a key using DANE, as specified in
3825 draft-ietf-dane-openpgpkey-05.txt.
3828 Locate a key using the Web Key Directory protocol.
3831 Using DNS Service Discovery, check the domain in question for
3832 any LDAP keyservers to use. If this fails, attempt to locate
3833 the key using the PGP Universal method of checking
3834 'ldap://keys.(thedomain)'.
3837 Locate the key using the Active Directory (Windows only).
3838 This method also allows to search by fingerprint using the
3839 command '--locate-external-key'.
3842 Locate a key using a keyserver. This method also allows to
3843 search by fingerprint using the command
3844 '--locate-external-key' if any of the configured keyservers is
3848 In addition, a keyserver URL as used in the 'dirmngr'
3849 configuration may be used here to query that particular
3850 keyserver. This method also allows to search by fingerprint
3851 using the command '--locate-external-key' if the URL specifies
3855 Locate the key using the local keyrings. This mechanism
3856 allows the user to select the order a local key lookup is
3857 done. Thus using '--auto-key-locate local' is identical to
3858 '--no-auto-key-locate'.
3861 This flag disables the standard local key lookup, done before
3862 any of the mechanisms defined by the '--auto-key-locate' are
3863 tried. The position of this mechanism in the list does not
3864 matter. It is not required if 'local' is also used.
3867 Clear all defined mechanisms. This is useful to override
3868 mechanisms given in a config file. Note that a 'nodefault' in
3869 MECHANISMS will also be cleared unless it is given after the
3873 '--no-auto-key-import'
3874 This is an offline mechanism to get a missing key for signature
3875 verification and for later encryption to this key. If this option
3876 is enabled and a signature includes an embedded key, that key is
3877 used to verify the signature and on verification success that key
3878 is imported. The default is '--no-auto-key-import'.
3880 On the sender (signing) site the option '--include-key-block' needs
3881 to be used to put the public part of the signing key as “Key Block
3882 subpacket” into the signature.
3884 '--auto-key-retrieve'
3885 '--no-auto-key-retrieve'
3886 These options enable or disable the automatic retrieving of keys
3887 from a keyserver when verifying signatures made by keys that are
3888 not on the local keyring. The default is '--no-auto-key-retrieve'.
3890 The order of methods tried to lookup the key is:
3892 1. If the option '--auto-key-import' is set and the signatures
3893 includes an embedded key, that key is used to verify the signature
3894 and on verification success that key is imported.
3896 2. If a preferred keyserver is specified in the signature and the
3897 option 'honor-keyserver-url' is active (which is not the default),
3898 that keyserver is tried. Note that the creator of the signature
3899 uses the option '--sig-keyserver-url' to specify the preferred
3900 keyserver for data signatures.
3902 3. If the signature has the Signer's UID set (e.g. using
3903 '--sender' while creating the signature) a Web Key Directory (WKD)
3904 lookup is done. This is the default configuration but can be
3905 disabled by removing WKD from the auto-key-locate list or by using
3906 the option '--disable-signer-uid'.
3908 4. If the option 'honor-pka-record' is active, the legacy PKA
3911 5. If any keyserver is configured and the Issuer Fingerprint is
3912 part of the signature (since GnuPG 2.1.16), the configured
3913 keyservers are tried.
3915 Note that this option makes a "web bug" like behavior possible.
3916 Keyserver or Web Key Directory operators can see which keys you
3917 request, so by sending you a message signed by a brand new key
3918 (which you naturally will not have on your local keyring), the
3919 operator can tell both your IP address and the time when you
3920 verified the signature.
3922 '--keyid-format {none|short|0xshort|long|0xlong}'
3923 Select how to display key IDs. "none" does not show the key ID at
3924 all but shows the fingerprint in a separate line. "short" is the
3925 traditional 8-character key ID. "long" is the more accurate (but
3926 less convenient) 16-character key ID. Add an "0x" to either to
3927 include an "0x" at the beginning of the key ID, as in 0x99242560.
3928 Note that this option is ignored if the option '--with-colons' is
3932 This option is deprecated - please use the '--keyserver' in
3933 'dirmngr.conf' instead.
3935 Use NAME as your keyserver. This is the server that
3936 '--receive-keys', '--send-keys', and '--search-keys' will
3937 communicate with to receive keys from, send keys to, and search for
3938 keys on. The format of the NAME is a URI:
3939 'scheme:[//]keyservername[:port]' The scheme is the type of
3940 keyserver: "hkp"/"hkps" for the HTTP (or compatible) keyservers or
3941 "ldap"/"ldaps" for the LDAP keyservers. Note that your particular
3942 installation of GnuPG may have other keyserver types available as
3943 well. Keyserver schemes are case-insensitive.
3945 Most keyservers synchronize with each other, so there is generally
3946 no need to send keys to more than one server. The keyserver
3947 'hkp://keys.gnupg.net' uses round robin DNS to give a different
3948 keyserver each time you use it.
3950 '--keyserver-options {NAME=VALUE}'
3951 This is a space or comma delimited string that gives options for
3952 the keyserver. Options can be prefixed with a 'no-' to give the
3953 opposite meaning. Valid import-options or export-options may be
3954 used here as well to apply to importing ('--recv-key') or exporting
3955 ('--send-key') a key from a keyserver. While not all options are
3956 available for all keyserver types, some common options are:
3959 When searching for a key with '--search-keys', include keys
3960 that are marked on the keyserver as revoked. Note that not
3961 all keyservers differentiate between revoked and unrevoked
3962 keys, and for such keyservers this option is meaningless.
3963 Note also that most keyservers do not have cryptographic
3964 verification of key revocations, and so turning this option
3965 off may result in skipping keys that are incorrectly marked as
3969 When searching for a key with '--search-keys', include keys
3970 that are marked on the keyserver as disabled. Note that this
3971 option is not used with HKP keyservers.
3974 This is an obsolete alias for the option 'auto-key-retrieve'.
3975 Please do not use it; it will be removed in future versions..
3978 When using '--refresh-keys', if the key in question has a
3979 preferred keyserver URL, then use that preferred keyserver to
3980 refresh the key from. In addition, if auto-key-retrieve is
3981 set, and the signature being verified has a preferred
3982 keyserver URL, then use that preferred keyserver to fetch the
3983 key from. Note that this option introduces a "web bug": The
3984 creator of the key can see when the keys is refreshed. Thus
3985 this option is not enabled by default.
3988 If '--auto-key-retrieve' is used, and the signature being
3989 verified has a PKA record, then use the PKA information to
3990 fetch the key. Defaults to "yes".
3993 When receiving a key, include subkeys as potential targets.
3994 Note that this option is not used with HKP keyservers, as they
3995 do not support retrieving keys by subkey id.
4003 These options have no more function since GnuPG 2.1. Use the
4004 'dirmngr' configuration options instead.
4006 The default list of options is: "self-sigs-only, import-clean,
4007 repair-keys, repair-pks-subkey-bug, export-attributes,
4008 honor-pka-record". However, if the actual used source is an LDAP
4009 server "no-self-sigs-only" is assumed unless "self-sigs-only" has
4010 been explictly configured.
4012 '--completes-needed N'
4013 Number of completely trusted users to introduce a new key signer
4016 '--marginals-needed N'
4017 Number of marginally trusted users to introduce a new key signer
4020 '--tofu-default-policy {auto|good|unknown|bad|ask}'
4021 The default TOFU policy (defaults to 'auto'). For more information
4022 about the meaning of this option, *note trust-model-tofu::.
4024 '--max-cert-depth N'
4025 Maximum depth of a certification chain (default is 5).
4028 Do not cache the verification status of key signatures. Caching
4029 gives a much better performance in key listings. However, if you
4030 suspect that your public keyring is not safe against write
4031 modifications, you can use this option to disable the caching. It
4032 probably does not make sense to disable it because all kind of
4033 damage can be done if someone else has write access to your public
4036 '--auto-check-trustdb'
4037 '--no-auto-check-trustdb'
4038 If GnuPG feels that its information about the Web of Trust has to
4039 be updated, it automatically runs the '--check-trustdb' command
4040 internally. This may be a time consuming process.
4041 '--no-auto-check-trustdb' disables this option.
4045 This is dummy option. 'gpg' always requires the agent.
4048 This is dummy option. It has no effect when used with 'gpg'.
4050 '--agent-program FILE'
4051 Specify an agent program to be used for secret key operations. The
4052 default value is determined by running 'gpgconf' with the option
4053 '--list-dirs'. Note that the pipe symbol ('|') is used for a
4054 regression test suite hack and may thus not be used in the file
4057 '--dirmngr-program FILE'
4058 Specify a dirmngr program to be used for keyserver access. The
4059 default value is '/usr/local/bin/dirmngr'.
4062 Entirely disable the use of the Dirmngr.
4065 Do not start the gpg-agent or the dirmngr if it has not yet been
4066 started and its service is required. This option is mostly useful
4067 on machines where the connection to gpg-agent has been redirected
4068 to another machines. If dirmngr is required on the remote machine,
4069 it may be started manually using 'gpgconf --launch dirmngr'.
4072 Lock the databases the first time a lock is requested and do not
4073 release the lock until the process terminates.
4076 Release the locks every time a lock is no longer needed. Use this
4077 to override a previous '--lock-once' from a config file.
4080 Disable locking entirely. This option should be used only in very
4081 special environments, where it can be assured that only one process
4082 is accessing those files. A bootable floppy with a stand-alone
4083 encryption system will probably use this. Improper usage of this
4084 option may lead to data and key corruption.
4086 '--exit-on-status-write-error'
4087 This option will cause write errors on the status FD to immediately
4088 terminate the process. That should in fact be the default but it
4089 never worked this way and thus we need an option to enable this, so
4090 that the change won't break applications which close their end of a
4091 status fd connected pipe too early. Using this option along with
4092 '--enable-progress-filter' may be used to cleanly cancel long
4093 running gpg operations.
4095 '--limit-card-insert-tries N'
4096 With N greater than 0 the number of prompts asking to insert a
4097 smartcard gets limited to N-1. Thus with a value of 1 gpg won't at
4098 all ask to insert a card if none has been inserted at startup.
4099 This option is useful in the configuration file in case an
4100 application does not know about the smartcard support and waits ad
4101 infinitum for an inserted card.
4103 '--no-random-seed-file'
4104 GnuPG uses a file to store its internal random pool over
4105 invocations. This makes random generation faster; however
4106 sometimes write operations are not desired. This option can be
4107 used to achieve that with the cost of slower random generation.
4110 Suppress the initial copyright message.
4112 '--no-secmem-warning'
4113 Suppress the warning about "using insecure memory".
4115 '--no-permission-warning'
4116 Suppress the warning about unsafe file and home directory
4117 ('--homedir') permissions. Note that the permission checks that
4118 GnuPG performs are not intended to be authoritative, but rather
4119 they simply warn about certain common permission problems. Do not
4120 assume that the lack of a warning means that your system is secure.
4122 Note that the warning for unsafe '--homedir' permissions cannot be
4123 suppressed in the gpg.conf file, as this would allow an attacker to
4124 place an unsafe gpg.conf file in place, and use this file to
4125 suppress warnings about itself. The '--homedir' permissions
4126 warning may only be suppressed on the command line.
4129 '--no-require-secmem'
4130 Refuse to run if GnuPG cannot get secure memory. Defaults to no
4131 (i.e. run, but give a warning).
4133 '--require-cross-certification'
4134 '--no-require-cross-certification'
4135 When verifying a signature made from a subkey, ensure that the
4136 cross certification "back signature" on the subkey is present and
4137 valid. This protects against a subtle attack against subkeys that
4138 can sign. Defaults to '--require-cross-certification' for 'gpg'.
4142 Allow the user to do certain nonsensical or "silly" things like
4143 signing an expired or revoked key, or certain potentially
4144 incompatible things like generating unusual key types. This also
4145 disables certain warning messages about potentially incompatible
4146 actions. As the name implies, this option is for experts only. If
4147 you don't fully understand the implications of what it allows you
4148 to do, leave this off. '--no-expert' disables this option.
4151 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPG Key related Options, Next: GPG Input and Output, Prev: GPG Configuration Options, Up: GPG Options
4153 4.2.2 Key related options
4154 -------------------------
4158 Encrypt for user id NAME. If this option or '--hidden-recipient'
4159 is not specified, GnuPG asks for the user-id unless
4160 '--default-recipient' is given.
4162 '--hidden-recipient NAME'
4164 Encrypt for user ID NAME, but hide the key ID of this user's key.
4165 This option helps to hide the receiver of the message and is a
4166 limited countermeasure against traffic analysis. If this option or
4167 '--recipient' is not specified, GnuPG asks for the user ID unless
4168 '--default-recipient' is given.
4170 '--recipient-file FILE'
4172 This option is similar to '--recipient' except that it encrypts to
4173 a key stored in the given file. FILE must be the name of a file
4174 containing exactly one key. 'gpg' assumes that the key in this
4175 file is fully valid.
4177 '--hidden-recipient-file FILE'
4179 This option is similar to '--hidden-recipient' except that it
4180 encrypts to a key stored in the given file. FILE must be the name
4181 of a file containing exactly one key. 'gpg' assumes that the key
4182 in this file is fully valid.
4185 Same as '--recipient' but this one is intended for use in the
4186 options file and may be used with your own user-id as an
4187 "encrypt-to-self". These keys are only used when there are other
4188 recipients given either by use of '--recipient' or by the asked
4189 user id. No trust checking is performed for these user ids and
4190 even disabled keys can be used.
4192 '--hidden-encrypt-to NAME'
4193 Same as '--hidden-recipient' but this one is intended for use in
4194 the options file and may be used with your own user-id as a hidden
4195 "encrypt-to-self". These keys are only used when there are other
4196 recipients given either by use of '--recipient' or by the asked
4197 user id. No trust checking is performed for these user ids and
4198 even disabled keys can be used.
4201 Disable the use of all '--encrypt-to' and '--hidden-encrypt-to'
4204 '--group {NAME=VALUE}'
4205 Sets up a named group, which is similar to aliases in email
4206 programs. Any time the group name is a recipient ('-r' or
4207 '--recipient'), it will be expanded to the values specified.
4208 Multiple groups with the same name are automatically merged into a
4211 The values are 'key IDs' or fingerprints, but any key description
4212 is accepted. Note that a value with spaces in it will be treated
4213 as two different values. Note also there is only one level of
4214 expansion -- you cannot make an group that points to another group.
4215 When used from the command line, it may be necessary to quote the
4216 argument to this option to prevent the shell from treating it as
4220 Remove a given entry from the '--group' list.
4223 Remove all entries from the '--group' list.
4227 Use NAME as the key to sign with. Note that this option overrides
4231 This option has two purposes. MBOX must either be a complete user
4232 id with a proper mail address or just a mail address. When
4233 creating a signature this option tells gpg the user id of a key
4234 used to make a signature if the key was not directly specified by a
4235 user id. When verifying a signature the MBOX is used to restrict
4236 the information printed by the TOFU code to matching user ids.
4238 '--try-secret-key NAME'
4239 For hidden recipients GPG needs to know the keys to use for trial
4240 decryption. The key set with '--default-key' is always tried
4241 first, but this is often not sufficient. This option allows
4242 setting more keys to be used for trial decryption. Although any
4243 valid user-id specification may be used for NAME it makes sense to
4244 use at least the long keyid to avoid ambiguities. Note that
4245 gpg-agent might pop up a pinentry for a lot keys to do the trial
4246 decryption. If you want to stop all further trial decryption you
4247 may use close-window button instead of the cancel button.
4250 Don't look at the key ID as stored in the message but try all
4251 secret keys in turn to find the right decryption key. This option
4252 forces the behaviour as used by anonymous recipients (created by
4253 using '--throw-keyids' or '--hidden-recipient') and might come
4254 handy in case where an encrypted message contains a bogus key ID.
4256 '--skip-hidden-recipients'
4257 '--no-skip-hidden-recipients'
4258 During decryption skip all anonymous recipients. This option helps
4259 in the case that people use the hidden recipients feature to hide
4260 their own encrypt-to key from others. If one has many secret keys
4261 this may lead to a major annoyance because all keys are tried in
4262 turn to decrypt something which was not really intended for it.
4263 The drawback of this option is that it is currently not possible to
4264 decrypt a message which includes real anonymous recipients.
4267 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPG Input and Output, Next: OpenPGP Options, Prev: GPG Key related Options, Up: GPG Options
4269 4.2.3 Input and Output
4270 ----------------------
4274 Create ASCII armored output. The default is to create the binary
4278 Assume the input data is not in ASCII armored format.
4282 Write output to FILE. To write to stdout use '-' as the filename.
4285 This option sets a limit on the number of bytes that will be
4286 generated when processing a file. Since OpenPGP supports various
4287 levels of compression, it is possible that the plaintext of a given
4288 message may be significantly larger than the original OpenPGP
4289 message. While GnuPG works properly with such messages, there is
4290 often a desire to set a maximum file size that will be generated
4291 before processing is forced to stop by the OS limits. Defaults to
4292 0, which means "no limit".
4294 '--input-size-hint N'
4295 This option can be used to tell GPG the size of the input data in
4296 bytes. N must be a positive base-10 number. This option is only
4297 useful if the input is not taken from a file. GPG may use this
4298 hint to optimize its buffer allocation strategy. It is also used
4299 by the '--status-fd' line "PROGRESS" to provide a value for "total"
4300 if that is not available by other means.
4302 '--key-origin STRING[,URL]'
4303 gpg can track the origin of a key. Certain origins are implicitly
4304 known (e.g. keyserver, web key directory) and set. For a standard
4305 import the origin of the keys imported can be set with this option.
4306 To list the possible values use "help" for STRING. Some origins
4307 can store an optional URL argument. That URL can appended to
4308 STRING after a comma.
4310 '--import-options PARAMETERS'
4311 This is a space or comma delimited string that gives options for
4312 importing keys. Options can be prepended with a 'no-' to give the
4313 opposite meaning. The options are:
4316 Allow importing key signatures marked as "local". This is not
4317 generally useful unless a shared keyring scheme is being used.
4321 Normally possible still existing ownertrust values of a key
4322 are cleared if a key is imported. This is in general
4323 desirable so that a formerly deleted key does not
4324 automatically gain an ownertrust values merely due to import.
4325 On the other hand it is sometimes necessary to re-import a
4326 trusted set of keys again but keeping already assigned
4327 ownertrust values. This can be achieved by using this option.
4329 repair-pks-subkey-bug
4330 During import, attempt to repair the damage caused by the PKS
4331 keyserver bug (pre version 0.9.6) that mangles keys with
4332 multiple subkeys. Note that this cannot completely repair the
4333 damaged key as some crucial data is removed by the keyserver,
4334 but it does at least give you back one subkey. Defaults to no
4335 for regular '--import' and to yes for keyserver
4340 Show a listing of the key as imported right before it is
4341 stored. This can be combined with the option '--dry-run' to
4342 only look at keys; the option 'show-only' is a shortcut for
4343 this combination. The command '--show-keys' is another
4344 shortcut for this. Note that suffixes like '#' for "sec" and
4345 "sbb" lines may or may not be printed.
4348 Run the entire import code but instead of storing the key to
4349 the local keyring write it to the output. The export options
4350 'export-pka' and 'export-dane' affect the output. This option
4351 can be used to remove all invalid parts from a key without the
4355 During import, allow key updates to existing keys, but do not
4356 allow any new keys to be imported. Defaults to no.
4359 After import, compact (remove all signatures except the
4360 self-signature) any user IDs from the new key that are not
4361 usable. Then, remove any signatures from the new key that are
4362 not usable. This includes signatures that were issued by keys
4363 that are not present on the keyring. This option is the same
4364 as running the '--edit-key' command "clean" after import.
4368 Accept only self-signatures while importing a key. All other
4369 key signatures are skipped at an early import stage. This
4370 option can be used with 'keyserver-options' to mitigate
4371 attempts to flood a key with bogus signatures from a
4372 keyserver. The drawback is that all other valid key
4373 signatures, as required by the Web of Trust are also not
4374 imported. Note that when using this option along with
4375 import-clean it suppresses the final clean step after merging
4376 the imported key into the existing key.
4379 After import, fix various problems with the keys. For
4380 example, this reorders signatures, and strips duplicate
4381 signatures. Defaults to yes.
4384 Import the smallest key possible. This removes all signatures
4385 except the most recent self-signature on each user ID. This
4386 option is the same as running the '--edit-key' command
4387 "minimize" after import. Defaults to no.
4391 Import in key restore mode. This imports all data which is
4392 usually skipped during import; including all GnuPG specific
4393 data. All other contradicting options are overridden.
4395 '--import-filter {NAME=EXPR}'
4396 '--export-filter {NAME=EXPR}'
4397 These options define an import/export filter which are applied to
4398 the imported/exported keyblock right before it will be
4399 stored/written. NAME defines the type of filter to use, EXPR the
4400 expression to evaluate. The option can be used several times which
4401 then appends more expression to the same NAME.
4403 The available filter types are:
4406 This filter will keep a user id packet and its dependent
4407 packets in the keyblock if the expression evaluates to true.
4410 This filter drops the selected subkeys. Currently only
4411 implemented for -export-filter.
4414 This filter drops the selected key signatures on user ids.
4415 Self-signatures are not considered. Currently only
4416 implemented for -import-filter.
4418 For the syntax of the expression see the chapter "FILTER
4419 EXPRESSIONS". The property names for the expressions depend on the
4420 actual filter type and are indicated in the following table.
4422 The available properties are:
4425 A string with the user id. (keep-uid)
4428 The addr-spec part of a user id with mailbox or the empty
4432 A number with the public key algorithm of a key or subkey
4433 packet. (drop-subkey)
4437 The first is the timestamp a public key or subkey packet was
4438 created. The second is the same but given as an ISO string,
4439 e.g. "2016-08-17". (drop-subkey)
4442 The hexified fingerprint of the current subkey or primary key.
4446 Boolean indicating whether the user id is the primary one.
4450 Boolean indicating whether a user id (keep-uid), a key
4451 (drop-subkey), or a signature (drop-sig) expired.
4454 Boolean indicating whether a user id (keep-uid) or a key
4455 (drop-subkey) has been revoked.
4458 Boolean indicating whether a primary key is disabled. (not
4462 Boolean indicating whether a key or subkey is a secret one.
4466 A string indicating the usage flags for the subkey, from the
4467 sequence "ecsa?". For example, a subkey capable of just
4468 signing and authentication would be an exact match for "sa".
4473 The first is the timestamp a signature packet was created.
4474 The second is the same but given as an ISO date string, e.g.
4475 "2016-08-17". (drop-sig)
4478 A number with the public key algorithm of a signature packet.
4482 A number with the digest algorithm of a signature packet.
4485 '--export-options PARAMETERS'
4486 This is a space or comma delimited string that gives options for
4487 exporting keys. Options can be prepended with a 'no-' to give the
4488 opposite meaning. The options are:
4491 Allow exporting key signatures marked as "local". This is not
4492 generally useful unless a shared keyring scheme is being used.
4496 Include attribute user IDs (photo IDs) while exporting. Not
4497 including attribute user IDs is useful to export keys that are
4498 going to be used by an OpenPGP program that does not accept
4499 attribute user IDs. Defaults to yes.
4501 export-sensitive-revkeys
4502 Include designated revoker information that was marked as
4503 "sensitive". Defaults to no.
4507 Export for use as a backup. The exported data includes all
4508 data which is needed to restore the key or keys later with
4509 GnuPG. The format is basically the OpenPGP format but enhanced
4510 with GnuPG specific data. All other contradicting options are
4514 Compact (remove all signatures from) user IDs on the key being
4515 exported if the user IDs are not usable. Also, do not export
4516 any signatures that are not usable. This includes signatures
4517 that were issued by keys that are not present on the keyring.
4518 This option is the same as running the '--edit-key' command
4519 "clean" before export except that the local copy of the key is
4520 not modified. Defaults to no.
4523 Export the smallest key possible. This removes all signatures
4524 except the most recent self-signature on each user ID. This
4525 option is the same as running the '--edit-key' command
4526 "minimize" before export except that the local copy of the key
4527 is not modified. Defaults to no.
4530 Instead of outputting the key material output PKA records
4531 suitable to put into DNS zone files. An ORIGIN line is
4532 printed before each record to allow diverting the records to
4533 the corresponding zone file.
4536 Instead of outputting the key material output OpenPGP DANE
4537 records suitable to put into DNS zone files. An ORIGIN line
4538 is printed before each record to allow diverting the records
4539 to the corresponding zone file.
4542 Print key listings delimited by colons. Note that the output will
4543 be encoded in UTF-8 regardless of any '--display-charset' setting.
4544 This format is useful when GnuPG is called from scripts and other
4545 programs as it is easily machine parsed. The details of this
4546 format are documented in the file 'doc/DETAILS', which is included
4547 in the GnuPG source distribution.
4550 Do not merge primary user ID and primary key in '--with-colon'
4551 listing mode and print all timestamps as seconds since 1970-01-01.
4552 Since GnuPG 2.0.10, this mode is always used and thus this option
4553 is obsolete; it does not harm to use it though.
4555 '--legacy-list-mode'
4556 Revert to the pre-2.1 public key list mode. This only affects the
4557 human readable output and not the machine interface (i.e.
4558 '--with-colons'). Note that the legacy format does not convey
4559 suitable information for elliptic curves.
4561 '--with-fingerprint'
4562 Same as the command '--fingerprint' but changes only the format of
4563 the output and may be used together with another command.
4565 '--with-subkey-fingerprint'
4566 If a fingerprint is printed for the primary key, this option forces
4567 printing of the fingerprint for all subkeys. This could also be
4568 achieved by using the '--with-fingerprint' twice but by using this
4569 option along with keyid-format "none" a compact fingerprint is
4572 '--with-icao-spelling'
4573 Print the ICAO spelling of the fingerprint in addition to the hex
4577 Include the keygrip in the key listings. In '--with-colons' mode
4578 this is implicitly enable for secret keys.
4581 Include the locally held information on the origin and last update
4582 of a key in a key listing. In '--with-colons' mode this is always
4583 printed. This data is currently experimental and shall not be
4584 considered part of the stable API.
4587 Print a Web Key Directory identifier along with each user ID in key
4588 listings. This is an experimental feature and semantics may
4592 Include info about the presence of a secret key in public key
4593 listings done with '--with-colons'.
4596 File: gnupg.info, Node: OpenPGP Options, Next: Compliance Options, Prev: GPG Input and Output, Up: GPG Options
4598 4.2.4 OpenPGP protocol specific options
4599 ---------------------------------------
4603 Treat input files as text and store them in the OpenPGP canonical
4604 text form with standard "CRLF" line endings. This also sets the
4605 necessary flags to inform the recipient that the encrypted or
4606 signed data is text and may need its line endings converted back to
4607 whatever the local system uses. This option is useful when
4608 communicating between two platforms that have different line ending
4609 conventions (UNIX-like to Mac, Mac to Windows, etc).
4610 '--no-textmode' disables this option, and is the default.
4613 '--no-force-v3-sigs'
4615 '--no-force-v4-certs'
4616 These options are obsolete and have no effect since GnuPG 2.1.
4620 These options are obsolete and have no effect since GnuPG 2.2.8.
4621 The MDC is always used. But note: If the creation of a legacy
4622 non-MDC message is exceptionally required, the option '--rfc2440'
4625 '--disable-signer-uid'
4626 By default the user ID of the signing key is embedded in the data
4627 signature. As of now this is only done if the signing key has been
4628 specified with 'local-user' using a mail address, or with 'sender'.
4629 This information can be helpful for verifier to locate the key; see
4630 option '--auto-key-retrieve'.
4632 '--include-key-block'
4633 This option is used to embed the actual signing key into a data
4634 signature. The embedded key is stripped down to a single user id
4635 and includes only the signing subkey used to create the signature
4636 as well as as valid encryption subkeys. All other info is removed
4637 from the key to keep it and thus the signature small. This option
4638 is the OpenPGP counterpart to the 'gpgsm' option '--include-certs'.
4640 '--personal-cipher-preferences STRING'
4641 Set the list of personal cipher preferences to STRING. Use 'gpg
4642 --version' to get a list of available algorithms, and use 'none' to
4643 set no preference at all. This allows the user to safely override
4644 the algorithm chosen by the recipient key preferences, as GPG will
4645 only select an algorithm that is usable by all recipients. The
4646 most highly ranked cipher in this list is also used for the
4647 '--symmetric' encryption command.
4649 '--personal-digest-preferences STRING'
4650 Set the list of personal digest preferences to STRING. Use 'gpg
4651 --version' to get a list of available algorithms, and use 'none' to
4652 set no preference at all. This allows the user to safely override
4653 the algorithm chosen by the recipient key preferences, as GPG will
4654 only select an algorithm that is usable by all recipients. The
4655 most highly ranked digest algorithm in this list is also used when
4656 signing without encryption (e.g. '--clear-sign' or '--sign').
4658 '--personal-compress-preferences STRING'
4659 Set the list of personal compression preferences to STRING. Use
4660 'gpg --version' to get a list of available algorithms, and use
4661 'none' to set no preference at all. This allows the user to safely
4662 override the algorithm chosen by the recipient key preferences, as
4663 GPG will only select an algorithm that is usable by all recipients.
4664 The most highly ranked compression algorithm in this list is also
4665 used when there are no recipient keys to consider (e.g.
4668 '--s2k-cipher-algo NAME'
4669 Use NAME as the cipher algorithm for symmetric encryption with a
4670 passphrase if '--personal-cipher-preferences' and '--cipher-algo'
4671 are not given. The default is AES-128.
4673 '--s2k-digest-algo NAME'
4674 Use NAME as the digest algorithm used to mangle the passphrases for
4675 symmetric encryption. The default is SHA-1.
4678 Selects how passphrases for symmetric encryption are mangled. If N
4679 is 0 a plain passphrase (which is in general not recommended) will
4680 be used, a 1 adds a salt (which should not be used) to the
4681 passphrase and a 3 (the default) iterates the whole process a
4682 number of times (see '--s2k-count').
4685 Specify how many times the passphrases mangling for symmetric
4686 encryption is repeated. This value may range between 1024 and
4687 65011712 inclusive. The default is inquired from gpg-agent. Note
4688 that not all values in the 1024-65011712 range are legal and if an
4689 illegal value is selected, GnuPG will round up to the nearest legal
4690 value. This option is only meaningful if '--s2k-mode' is set to
4694 File: gnupg.info, Node: Compliance Options, Next: GPG Esoteric Options, Prev: OpenPGP Options, Up: GPG Options
4696 4.2.5 Compliance options
4697 ------------------------
4699 These options control what GnuPG is compliant to. Only one of these
4700 options may be active at a time. Note that the default setting of this
4701 is nearly always the correct one. See the INTEROPERABILITY WITH OTHER
4702 OPENPGP PROGRAMS section below before using one of these options.
4705 Use standard GnuPG behavior. This is essentially OpenPGP behavior
4706 (see '--openpgp'), but with some additional workarounds for common
4707 compatibility problems in different versions of PGP. This is the
4708 default option, so it is not generally needed, but it may be useful
4709 to override a different compliance option in the gpg.conf file.
4712 Reset all packet, cipher and digest options to strict OpenPGP
4713 behavior. Use this option to reset all previous options like
4714 '--s2k-*', '--cipher-algo', '--digest-algo' and '--compress-algo'
4715 to OpenPGP compliant values. All PGP workarounds are disabled.
4718 Reset all packet, cipher and digest options to strict RFC-4880
4719 behavior. Note that this is currently the same thing as
4723 Enable experimental features from proposed updates to RFC-4880.
4724 This option can be used in addition to the other compliance
4725 options. Warning: The behavior may change with any GnuPG release
4726 and created keys or data may not be usable with future GnuPG
4730 Reset all packet, cipher and digest options to strict RFC-2440
4731 behavior. Note that by using this option encryption packets are
4732 created in a legacy mode without MDC protection. This is dangerous
4733 and should thus only be used for experiments. See also option
4734 '--ignore-mdc-error'.
4737 Set up all options to be as PGP 6 compliant as possible. This
4738 restricts you to the ciphers IDEA (if the IDEA plugin is
4739 installed), 3DES, and CAST5, the hashes MD5, SHA1 and RIPEMD160,
4740 and the compression algorithms none and ZIP. This also disables
4741 '--throw-keyids', and making signatures with signing subkeys as PGP
4742 6 does not understand signatures made by signing subkeys.
4744 This option implies '--escape-from-lines'.
4747 Set up all options to be as PGP 7 compliant as possible. This is
4748 identical to '--pgp6' except that MDCs are not disabled, and the
4749 list of allowable ciphers is expanded to add AES128, AES192,
4750 AES256, and TWOFISH.
4753 Set up all options to be as PGP 8 compliant as possible. PGP 8 is
4754 a lot closer to the OpenPGP standard than previous versions of PGP,
4755 so all this does is disable '--throw-keyids' and set
4756 '--escape-from-lines'. All algorithms are allowed except for the
4757 SHA224, SHA384, and SHA512 digests.
4759 '--compliance STRING'
4760 This option can be used instead of one of the options above. Valid
4761 values for STRING are the above option names (without the double
4762 dash) and possibly others as shown when using "help" for VALUE.
4765 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPG Esoteric Options, Next: Deprecated Options, Prev: Compliance Options, Up: GPG Options
4767 4.2.6 Doing things one usually doesn't want to do
4768 -------------------------------------------------
4772 Don't make any changes (this is not completely implemented).
4775 Changes the behaviour of some commands. This is like '--dry-run'
4776 but different in some cases. The semantic of this option may be
4777 extended in the future. Currently it only skips the actual
4778 decryption pass and therefore enables a fast listing of the
4783 Prompt before overwriting any files.
4785 '--debug-level LEVEL'
4786 Select the debug level for investigating problems. LEVEL may be a
4787 numeric value or by a keyword:
4790 No debugging at all. A value of less than 1 may be used
4791 instead of the keyword.
4793 Some basic debug messages. A value between 1 and 2 may be
4794 used instead of the keyword.
4796 More verbose debug messages. A value between 3 and 5 may be
4797 used instead of the keyword.
4799 Even more detailed messages. A value between 6 and 8 may be
4800 used instead of the keyword.
4802 All of the debug messages you can get. A value greater than 8
4803 may be used instead of the keyword. The creation of hash
4804 tracing files is only enabled if the keyword is used.
4806 How these messages are mapped to the actual debugging flags is not
4807 specified and may change with newer releases of this program. They
4808 are however carefully selected to best aid in debugging.
4811 Set debugging flags. All flags are or-ed and FLAGS may be given in
4812 C syntax (e.g. 0x0042) or as a comma separated list of flag names.
4813 To get a list of all supported flags the single word "help" can be
4817 Set all useful debugging flags.
4820 Set stdout into line buffered mode. This option is only honored
4821 when given on the command line.
4823 '--faked-system-time EPOCH'
4824 This option is only useful for testing; it sets the system time
4825 back or forth to EPOCH which is the number of seconds elapsed since
4826 the year 1970. Alternatively EPOCH may be given as a full ISO time
4827 string (e.g. "20070924T154812").
4829 If you suffix EPOCH with an exclamation mark (!), the system time
4830 will appear to be frozen at the specified time.
4832 '--enable-progress-filter'
4833 Enable certain PROGRESS status outputs. This option allows
4834 frontends to display a progress indicator while gpg is processing
4835 larger files. There is a slight performance overhead using it.
4838 Write special status strings to the file descriptor N. See the
4839 file DETAILS in the documentation for a listing of them.
4841 '--status-file FILE'
4842 Same as '--status-fd', except the status data is written to file
4846 Write log output to file descriptor N and not to STDERR.
4849 '--logger-file FILE'
4850 Same as '--logger-fd', except the logger data is written to file
4851 FILE. Use 'socket://' to log to a socket. Note that in this
4852 version of gpg the option has only an effect if '--batch' is also
4856 Write attribute subpackets to the file descriptor N. This is most
4857 useful for use with '--status-fd', since the status messages are
4858 needed to separate out the various subpackets from the stream
4859 delivered to the file descriptor.
4861 '--attribute-file FILE'
4862 Same as '--attribute-fd', except the attribute data is written to
4867 Use STRING as a comment string in cleartext signatures and ASCII
4868 armored messages or keys (see '--armor'). The default behavior is
4869 not to use a comment string. '--comment' may be repeated multiple
4870 times to get multiple comment strings. '--no-comments' removes all
4871 comments. It is a good idea to keep the length of a single comment
4872 below 60 characters to avoid problems with mail programs wrapping
4873 such lines. Note that comment lines, like all other header lines,
4874 are not protected by the signature.
4878 Force inclusion of the version string in ASCII armored output. If
4879 given once only the name of the program and the major number is
4880 emitted, given twice the minor is also emitted, given thrice the
4881 micro is added, and given four times an operating system
4882 identification is also emitted. '--no-emit-version' (default)
4883 disables the version line.
4885 '--sig-notation {NAME=VALUE}'
4886 '--cert-notation {NAME=VALUE}'
4887 '-N, --set-notation {NAME=VALUE}'
4888 Put the name value pair into the signature as notation data. NAME
4889 must consist only of printable characters or spaces, and must
4890 contain a '@' character in the form keyname@domain.example.com
4891 (substituting the appropriate keyname and domain name, of course).
4892 This is to help prevent pollution of the IETF reserved notation
4893 namespace. The '--expert' flag overrides the '@' check. VALUE may
4894 be any printable string; it will be encoded in UTF-8, so you should
4895 check that your '--display-charset' is set correctly. If you
4896 prefix NAME with an exclamation mark (!), the notation data will be
4897 flagged as critical (rfc4880:5.2.3.16). '--sig-notation' sets a
4898 notation for data signatures. '--cert-notation' sets a notation
4899 for key signatures (certifications). '--set-notation' sets both.
4901 There are special codes that may be used in notation names. "%k"
4902 will be expanded into the key ID of the key being signed, "%K" into
4903 the long key ID of the key being signed, "%f" into the fingerprint
4904 of the key being signed, "%s" into the key ID of the key making the
4905 signature, "%S" into the long key ID of the key making the
4906 signature, "%g" into the fingerprint of the key making the
4907 signature (which might be a subkey), "%p" into the fingerprint of
4908 the primary key of the key making the signature, "%c" into the
4909 signature count from the OpenPGP smartcard, and "%%" results in a
4910 single "%". %k, %K, and %f are only meaningful when making a key
4911 signature (certification), and %c is only meaningful when using the
4914 '--known-notation NAME'
4915 Adds NAME to a list of known critical signature notations. The
4916 effect of this is that gpg will not mark a signature with a
4917 critical signature notation of that name as bad. Note that gpg
4918 already knows by default about a few critical signatures notation
4921 '--sig-policy-url STRING'
4922 '--cert-policy-url STRING'
4923 '--set-policy-url STRING'
4924 Use STRING as a Policy URL for signatures (rfc4880:5.2.3.20). If
4925 you prefix it with an exclamation mark (!), the policy URL packet
4926 will be flagged as critical. '--sig-policy-url' sets a policy url
4927 for data signatures. '--cert-policy-url' sets a policy url for key
4928 signatures (certifications). '--set-policy-url' sets both.
4930 The same %-expandos used for notation data are available here as
4933 '--sig-keyserver-url STRING'
4934 Use STRING as a preferred keyserver URL for data signatures. If
4935 you prefix it with an exclamation mark (!), the keyserver URL
4936 packet will be flagged as critical.
4938 The same %-expandos used for notation data are available here as
4941 '--set-filename STRING'
4942 Use STRING as the filename which is stored inside messages. This
4943 overrides the default, which is to use the actual filename of the
4944 file being encrypted. Using the empty string for STRING
4945 effectively removes the filename from the output.
4947 '--for-your-eyes-only'
4948 '--no-for-your-eyes-only'
4949 Set the 'for your eyes only' flag in the message. This causes
4950 GnuPG to refuse to save the file unless the '--output' option is
4951 given, and PGP to use a "secure viewer" with a claimed
4952 Tempest-resistant font to display the message. This option
4953 overrides '--set-filename'. '--no-for-your-eyes-only' disables
4956 '--use-embedded-filename'
4957 '--no-use-embedded-filename'
4958 Try to create a file with a name as embedded in the data. This can
4959 be a dangerous option as it enables overwriting files. Defaults to
4960 no. Note that the option '--output' overrides this option.
4962 '--cipher-algo NAME'
4963 Use NAME as cipher algorithm. Running the program with the command
4964 '--version' yields a list of supported algorithms. If this is not
4965 used the cipher algorithm is selected from the preferences stored
4966 with the key. In general, you do not want to use this option as it
4967 allows you to violate the OpenPGP standard.
4968 '--personal-cipher-preferences' is the safe way to accomplish the
4971 '--digest-algo NAME'
4972 Use NAME as the message digest algorithm. Running the program with
4973 the command '--version' yields a list of supported algorithms. In
4974 general, you do not want to use this option as it allows you to
4975 violate the OpenPGP standard. '--personal-digest-preferences' is
4976 the safe way to accomplish the same thing.
4978 '--compress-algo NAME'
4979 Use compression algorithm NAME. "zlib" is RFC-1950 ZLIB
4980 compression. "zip" is RFC-1951 ZIP compression which is used by
4981 PGP. "bzip2" is a more modern compression scheme that can compress
4982 some things better than zip or zlib, but at the cost of more memory
4983 used during compression and decompression. "uncompressed" or
4984 "none" disables compression. If this option is not used, the
4985 default behavior is to examine the recipient key preferences to see
4986 which algorithms the recipient supports. If all else fails, ZIP is
4987 used for maximum compatibility.
4989 ZLIB may give better compression results than ZIP, as the
4990 compression window size is not limited to 8k. BZIP2 may give even
4991 better compression results than that, but will use a significantly
4992 larger amount of memory while compressing and decompressing. This
4993 may be significant in low memory situations. Note, however, that
4994 PGP (all versions) only supports ZIP compression. Using any
4995 algorithm other than ZIP or "none" will make the message unreadable
4996 with PGP. In general, you do not want to use this option as it
4997 allows you to violate the OpenPGP standard.
4998 '--personal-compress-preferences' is the safe way to accomplish the
5001 '--cert-digest-algo NAME'
5002 Use NAME as the message digest algorithm used when signing a key.
5003 Running the program with the command '--version' yields a list of
5004 supported algorithms. Be aware that if you choose an algorithm
5005 that GnuPG supports but other OpenPGP implementations do not, then
5006 some users will not be able to use the key signatures you make, or
5007 quite possibly your entire key.
5009 '--disable-cipher-algo NAME'
5010 Never allow the use of NAME as cipher algorithm. The given name
5011 will not be checked so that a later loaded algorithm will still get
5014 '--disable-pubkey-algo NAME'
5015 Never allow the use of NAME as public key algorithm. The given
5016 name will not be checked so that a later loaded algorithm will
5021 Do not put the recipient key IDs into encrypted messages. This
5022 helps to hide the receivers of the message and is a limited
5023 countermeasure against traffic analysis.(1) On the receiving side,
5024 it may slow down the decryption process because all available
5025 secret keys must be tried. '--no-throw-keyids' disables this
5026 option. This option is essentially the same as using
5027 '--hidden-recipient' for all recipients.
5029 '--not-dash-escaped'
5030 This option changes the behavior of cleartext signatures so that
5031 they can be used for patch files. You should not send such an
5032 armored file via email because all spaces and line endings are
5033 hashed too. You can not use this option for data which has 5
5034 dashes at the beginning of a line, patch files don't have this. A
5035 special armor header line tells GnuPG about this cleartext
5038 '--escape-from-lines'
5039 '--no-escape-from-lines'
5040 Because some mailers change lines starting with "From " to ">From "
5041 it is good to handle such lines in a special way when creating
5042 cleartext signatures to prevent the mail system from breaking the
5043 signature. Note that all other PGP versions do it this way too.
5044 Enabled by default. '--no-escape-from-lines' disables this option.
5046 '--passphrase-repeat N'
5047 Specify how many times 'gpg' will request a new passphrase be
5048 repeated. This is useful for helping memorize a passphrase.
5049 Defaults to 1 repetition; can be set to 0 to disable any passphrase
5050 repetition. Note that a N greater than 1 will pop up the pinentry
5051 window N+1 times even if a modern pinentry with two entry fields is
5055 Read the passphrase from file descriptor N. Only the first line
5056 will be read from file descriptor N. If you use 0 for N, the
5057 passphrase will be read from STDIN. This can only be used if only
5058 one passphrase is supplied.
5060 Note that since Version 2.0 this passphrase is only used if the
5061 option '--batch' has also been given. Since Version 2.1 the
5062 '--pinentry-mode' also needs to be set to 'loopback'.
5064 '--passphrase-file FILE'
5065 Read the passphrase from file FILE. Only the first line will be
5066 read from file FILE. This can only be used if only one passphrase
5067 is supplied. Obviously, a passphrase stored in a file is of
5068 questionable security if other users can read this file. Don't use
5069 this option if you can avoid it.
5071 Note that since Version 2.0 this passphrase is only used if the
5072 option '--batch' has also been given. Since Version 2.1 the
5073 '--pinentry-mode' also needs to be set to 'loopback'.
5075 '--passphrase STRING'
5076 Use STRING as the passphrase. This can only be used if only one
5077 passphrase is supplied. Obviously, this is of very questionable
5078 security on a multi-user system. Don't use this option if you can
5081 Note that since Version 2.0 this passphrase is only used if the
5082 option '--batch' has also been given. Since Version 2.1 the
5083 '--pinentry-mode' also needs to be set to 'loopback'.
5085 '--pinentry-mode MODE'
5086 Set the pinentry mode to MODE. Allowed values for MODE are:
5088 Use the default of the agent, which is 'ask'.
5090 Force the use of the Pinentry.
5092 Emulate use of Pinentry's cancel button.
5094 Return a Pinentry error ("No Pinentry").
5096 Redirect Pinentry queries to the caller. Note that in
5097 contrast to Pinentry the user is not prompted again if he
5098 enters a bad password.
5101 Disable the passphrase cache used for symmetrical en- and
5102 decryption. This cache is based on the message specific salt value
5105 '--request-origin ORIGIN'
5106 Tell gpg to assume that the operation ultimately originated at
5107 ORIGIN. Depending on the origin certain restrictions are applied
5108 and the Pinentry may include an extra note on the origin.
5109 Supported values for ORIGIN are: 'local' which is the default,
5110 'remote' to indicate a remote origin or 'browser' for an operation
5111 requested by a web browser.
5114 This is a replacement for the deprecated shared-memory IPC mode.
5115 If this option is enabled, user input on questions is not expected
5116 from the TTY but from the given file descriptor. It should be used
5117 together with '--status-fd'. See the file doc/DETAILS in the
5118 source distribution for details on how to use it.
5120 '--command-file FILE'
5121 Same as '--command-fd', except the commands are read out of file
5124 '--allow-non-selfsigned-uid'
5125 '--no-allow-non-selfsigned-uid'
5126 Allow the import and use of keys with user IDs which are not
5127 self-signed. This is not recommended, as a non self-signed user ID
5128 is trivial to forge. '--no-allow-non-selfsigned-uid' disables.
5130 '--allow-freeform-uid'
5131 Disable all checks on the form of the user ID while generating a
5132 new one. This option should only be used in very special
5133 environments as it does not ensure the de-facto standard format of
5136 '--ignore-time-conflict'
5137 GnuPG normally checks that the timestamps associated with keys and
5138 signatures have plausible values. However, sometimes a signature
5139 seems to be older than the key due to clock problems. This option
5140 makes these checks just a warning. See also '--ignore-valid-from'
5141 for timestamp issues on subkeys.
5143 '--ignore-valid-from'
5144 GnuPG normally does not select and use subkeys created in the
5145 future. This option allows the use of such keys and thus exhibits
5146 the pre-1.0.7 behaviour. You should not use this option unless
5147 there is some clock problem. See also '--ignore-time-conflict' for
5148 timestamp issues with signatures.
5150 '--ignore-crc-error'
5151 The ASCII armor used by OpenPGP is protected by a CRC checksum
5152 against transmission errors. Occasionally the CRC gets mangled
5153 somewhere on the transmission channel but the actual content (which
5154 is protected by the OpenPGP protocol anyway) is still okay. This
5155 option allows GnuPG to ignore CRC errors.
5157 '--ignore-mdc-error'
5158 This option changes a MDC integrity protection failure into a
5159 warning. It is required to decrypt old messages which did not use
5160 an MDC. It may also be useful if a message is partially garbled,
5161 but it is necessary to get as much data as possible out of that
5162 garbled message. Be aware that a missing or failed MDC can be an
5163 indication of an attack. Use with great caution; see also option
5166 '--allow-weak-digest-algos'
5167 Signatures made with known-weak digest algorithms are normally
5168 rejected with an "invalid digest algorithm" message. This option
5169 allows the verification of signatures made with such weak
5170 algorithms. MD5 is the only digest algorithm considered weak by
5171 default. See also '--weak-digest' to reject other digest
5174 '--weak-digest NAME'
5175 Treat the specified digest algorithm as weak. Signatures made over
5176 weak digests algorithms are normally rejected. This option can be
5177 supplied multiple times if multiple algorithms should be considered
5178 weak. See also '--allow-weak-digest-algos' to disable rejection of
5179 weak digests. MD5 is always considered weak, and does not need to
5180 be listed explicitly.
5182 '--allow-weak-key-signatures'
5183 To avoid a minor risk of collision attacks on third-party key
5184 signatures made using SHA-1, those key signatures are considered
5185 invalid. This options allows to override this restriction.
5187 '--no-default-keyring'
5188 Do not add the default keyrings to the list of keyrings. Note that
5189 GnuPG will not operate without any keyrings, so if you use this
5190 option and do not provide alternate keyrings via '--keyring' or
5191 '--secret-keyring', then GnuPG will still use the default public or
5195 Do not use any keyring at all. This overrides the default and all
5196 options which specify keyrings.
5199 Skip the signature verification step. This may be used to make the
5200 decryption faster if the signature verification is not needed.
5203 Print key listings delimited by colons (like '--with-colons') and
5204 print the public key data.
5208 Same as '--list-keys', but the signatures are listed too. This
5209 command has the same effect as using '--list-keys' with
5210 '--with-sig-list'. Note that in contrast to '--check-signatures'
5211 the key signatures are not verified. This command can be used to
5212 create a list of signing keys missing in the local keyring; for
5215 gpg --list-sigs --with-colons USERID | \
5216 awk -F: '$1=="sig" && $2=="?" {if($13){print $13}else{print $5}}'
5219 Changes the output of the list commands to work faster; this is
5220 achieved by leaving some parts empty. Some applications don't need
5221 the user ID and the trust information given in the listings. By
5222 using this options they can get a faster listing. The exact
5223 behaviour of this option may change in future versions. If you are
5224 missing some information, don't use this option.
5227 This is not for normal use. Use the source to see for what it
5231 This is not for normal use. Use the source to see for what it
5234 '--show-session-key'
5235 Display the session key used for one message. See
5236 '--override-session-key' for the counterpart of this option.
5238 We think that Key Escrow is a Bad Thing; however the user should
5239 have the freedom to decide whether to go to prison or to reveal the
5240 content of one specific message without compromising all messages
5241 ever encrypted for one secret key.
5243 You can also use this option if you receive an encrypted message
5244 which is abusive or offensive, to prove to the administrators of
5245 the messaging system that the ciphertext transmitted corresponds to
5246 an inappropriate plaintext so they can take action against the
5249 '--override-session-key STRING'
5250 '--override-session-key-fd FD'
5251 Don't use the public key but the session key STRING respective the
5252 session key taken from the first line read from file descriptor FD.
5253 The format of this string is the same as the one printed by
5254 '--show-session-key'. This option is normally not used but comes
5255 handy in case someone forces you to reveal the content of an
5256 encrypted message; using this option you can do this without
5257 handing out the secret key. Note that using
5258 '--override-session-key' may reveal the session key to all local
5259 users via the global process table. Often it is useful to combine
5260 this option with '--no-keyring'.
5263 '--no-ask-sig-expire'
5264 When making a data signature, prompt for an expiration time. If
5265 this option is not specified, the expiration time set via
5266 '--default-sig-expire' is used. '--no-ask-sig-expire' disables
5269 '--default-sig-expire'
5270 The default expiration time to use for signature expiration. Valid
5271 values are "0" for no expiration, a number followed by the letter d
5272 (for days), w (for weeks), m (for months), or y (for years) (for
5273 example "2m" for two months, or "5y" for five years), or an
5274 absolute date in the form YYYY-MM-DD. Defaults to "0".
5277 '--no-ask-cert-expire'
5278 When making a key signature, prompt for an expiration time. If
5279 this option is not specified, the expiration time set via
5280 '--default-cert-expire' is used. '--no-ask-cert-expire' disables
5283 '--default-cert-expire'
5284 The default expiration time to use for key signature expiration.
5285 Valid values are "0" for no expiration, a number followed by the
5286 letter d (for days), w (for weeks), m (for months), or y (for
5287 years) (for example "2m" for two months, or "5y" for five years),
5288 or an absolute date in the form YYYY-MM-DD. Defaults to "0".
5290 '--default-new-key-algo STRING'
5291 This option can be used to change the default algorithms for key
5292 generation. The STRING is similar to the arguments required for
5293 the command '--quick-add-key' but slightly different. For example
5294 the current default of '"rsa2048/cert,sign+rsa2048/encr"' (or
5295 '"rsa3072"') can be changed to the value of what we currently call
5296 future default, which is '"ed25519/cert,sign+cv25519/encr"'. You
5297 need to consult the source code to learn the details. Note that
5298 the advanced key generation commands can always be used to specify
5299 a key algorithm directly.
5302 This option modifies the behaviour of the commands
5303 '--quick-sign-key', '--quick-lsign-key', and the "sign"
5304 sub-commands of '--edit-key' by forcing the creation of a key
5305 signature, even if one already exists.
5307 '--allow-secret-key-import'
5308 This is an obsolete option and is not used anywhere.
5310 '--allow-multiple-messages'
5311 '--no-allow-multiple-messages'
5312 Allow processing of multiple OpenPGP messages contained in a single
5313 file or stream. Some programs that call GPG are not prepared to
5314 deal with multiple messages being processed together, so this
5315 option defaults to no. Note that versions of GPG prior to 1.4.7
5316 always allowed multiple messages. Future versions of GnUPG will
5319 Warning: Do not use this option unless you need it as a temporary
5322 '--enable-special-filenames'
5323 This option enables a mode in which filenames of the form '-&n',
5324 where n is a non-negative decimal number, refer to the file
5325 descriptor n and not to a file with that name.
5327 '--no-expensive-trust-checks'
5328 Experimental use only.
5330 '--preserve-permissions'
5331 Don't change the permissions of a secret keyring back to user
5332 read/write only. Use this option only if you really know what you
5335 '--default-preference-list STRING'
5336 Set the list of default preferences to STRING. This preference
5337 list is used for new keys and becomes the default for "setpref" in
5340 '--default-keyserver-url NAME'
5341 Set the default keyserver URL to NAME. This keyserver will be used
5342 as the keyserver URL when writing a new self-signature on a key,
5343 which includes key generation and changing preferences.
5346 Display various internal configuration parameters of GnuPG. This
5347 option is intended for external programs that call GnuPG to perform
5348 tasks, and is thus not generally useful. See the file
5349 'doc/DETAILS' in the source distribution for the details of which
5350 configuration items may be listed. '--list-config' is only usable
5351 with '--with-colons' set.
5353 '--list-gcrypt-config'
5354 Display various internal configuration parameters of Libgcrypt.
5357 This command is similar to '--list-config' but in general only
5358 internally used by the 'gpgconf' tool.
5361 This is more or less dummy action. However it parses the
5362 configuration file and returns with failure if the configuration
5363 file would prevent 'gpg' from startup. Thus it may be used to run
5364 a syntax check on the configuration file.
5366 ---------- Footnotes ----------
5368 (1) Using a little social engineering anyone who is able to decrypt
5369 the message can check whether one of the other recipients is the one he
5373 File: gnupg.info, Node: Deprecated Options, Prev: GPG Esoteric Options, Up: GPG Options
5375 4.2.7 Deprecated options
5376 ------------------------
5380 Causes '--list-keys', '--list-signatures', '--list-public-keys',
5381 '--list-secret-keys', and verifying a signature to also display the
5382 photo ID attached to the key, if any. See also '--photo-viewer'.
5383 These options are deprecated. Use '--list-options
5384 [no-]show-photos' and/or '--verify-options [no-]show-photos'
5388 Display the keyring name at the head of key listings to show which
5389 keyring a given key resides on. This option is deprecated: use
5390 '--list-options [no-]show-keyring' instead.
5393 Identical to '--trust-model always'. This option is deprecated.
5396 '--no-show-notation'
5397 Show signature notations in the '--list-signatures' or
5398 '--check-signatures' listings as well as when verifying a signature
5399 with a notation in it. These options are deprecated. Use
5400 '--list-options [no-]show-notation' and/or '--verify-options
5401 [no-]show-notation' instead.
5404 '--no-show-policy-url'
5405 Show policy URLs in the '--list-signatures' or '--check-signatures'
5406 listings as well as when verifying a signature with a policy URL in
5407 it. These options are deprecated. Use '--list-options
5408 [no-]show-policy-url' and/or '--verify-options
5409 [no-]show-policy-url' instead.
5412 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPG Configuration, Next: GPG Examples, Prev: GPG Options, Up: Invoking GPG
5414 4.3 Configuration files
5415 =======================
5417 There are a few configuration files to control certain aspects of
5418 'gpg''s operation. Unless noted, they are expected in the current home
5419 directory (*note option --homedir::).
5422 This is the standard configuration file read by 'gpg' on startup.
5423 It may contain any valid long option; the leading two dashes may
5424 not be entered and the option may not be abbreviated. This default
5425 name may be changed on the command line (*note gpg-option
5426 --options::). You should backup this file.
5428 Note that on larger installations, it is useful to put predefined
5429 files into the directory '/etc/skel/.gnupg' so that newly created users
5430 start up with a working configuration. For existing users a small
5431 helper script is provided to create these files (*note addgnupghome::).
5433 For internal purposes 'gpg' creates and maintains a few other files;
5434 They all live in the current home directory (*note option --homedir::).
5435 Only the 'gpg' program may modify these files.
5438 This is the default home directory which is used if neither the
5439 environment variable 'GNUPGHOME' nor the option '--homedir' is
5442 '~/.gnupg/pubring.gpg'
5443 The public keyring using a legacy format. You should backup this
5446 If this file is not available, 'gpg' defaults to the new keybox
5447 format and creates a file 'pubring.kbx' unless that file already
5448 exists in which case that file will also be used for OpenPGP keys.
5450 Note that in the case that both files, 'pubring.gpg' and
5451 'pubring.kbx' exists but the latter has no OpenPGP keys, the legacy
5452 file 'pubring.gpg' will be used. Take care: GnuPG versions before
5453 2.1 will always use the file 'pubring.gpg' because they do not know
5454 about the new keybox format. In the case that you have to use
5455 GnuPG 1.4 to decrypt archived data you should keep this file.
5457 '~/.gnupg/pubring.gpg.lock'
5458 The lock file for the public keyring.
5460 '~/.gnupg/pubring.kbx'
5461 The public keyring using the new keybox format. This file is
5462 shared with 'gpgsm'. You should backup this file. See above for
5463 the relation between this file and it predecessor.
5465 To convert an existing 'pubring.gpg' file to the keybox format, you
5466 first backup the ownertrust values, then rename 'pubring.gpg' to
5467 'publickeys.backup', so it won’t be recognized by any GnuPG
5468 version, run import, and finally restore the ownertrust values:
5471 $ gpg --export-ownertrust >otrust.lst
5472 $ mv pubring.gpg publickeys.backup
5473 $ gpg --import-options restore --import publickeys.backups
5474 $ gpg --import-ownertrust otrust.lst
5476 '~/.gnupg/pubring.kbx.lock'
5477 The lock file for 'pubring.kbx'.
5479 '~/.gnupg/secring.gpg'
5480 The legacy secret keyring as used by GnuPG versions before 2.1. It
5481 is not used by GnuPG 2.1 and later. You may want to keep it in
5482 case you have to use GnuPG 1.4 to decrypt archived data.
5484 '~/.gnupg/secring.gpg.lock'
5485 The lock file for the legacy secret keyring.
5487 '~/.gnupg/.gpg-v21-migrated'
5488 File indicating that a migration to GnuPG 2.1 has been done.
5490 '~/.gnupg/trustdb.gpg'
5491 The trust database. There is no need to backup this file; it is
5492 better to backup the ownertrust values (*note option
5493 --export-ownertrust::).
5495 '~/.gnupg/trustdb.gpg.lock'
5496 The lock file for the trust database.
5498 '~/.gnupg/random_seed'
5499 A file used to preserve the state of the internal random pool.
5501 '~/.gnupg/openpgp-revocs.d/'
5502 This is the directory where gpg stores pre-generated revocation
5503 certificates. The file name corresponds to the OpenPGP fingerprint
5504 of the respective key. It is suggested to backup those
5505 certificates and if the primary private key is not stored on the
5506 disk to move them to an external storage device. Anyone who can
5507 access theses files is able to revoke the corresponding key. You
5508 may want to print them out. You should backup all files in this
5509 directory and take care to keep this backup closed away.
5511 Operation is further controlled by a few environment variables:
5514 Used to locate the default home directory.
5517 If set directory used instead of "~/.gnupg".
5520 This variable is obsolete; it was used by GnuPG versions before
5524 This value is passed via gpg-agent to pinentry. It is useful to
5525 convey extra information to a custom pinentry.
5529 Used to size some displays to the full size of the screen.
5532 Apart from its use by GNU, it is used in the W32 version to
5533 override the language selection done through the Registry. If used
5534 and set to a valid and available language name (LANGID), the file
5535 with the translation is loaded from 'GPGDIR/gnupg.nls/LANGID.mo'.
5536 Here GPGDIR is the directory out of which the gpg binary has been
5537 loaded. If it can't be loaded the Registry is tried and as last
5538 resort the native Windows locale system is used.
5540 When calling the gpg-agent component 'gpg' sends a set of environment
5541 variables to gpg-agent. The names of these variables can be listed
5544 gpg-connect-agent 'getinfo std_env_names' /bye | awk '$1=="D" {print $2}'
5547 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPG Examples, Next: Unattended Usage of GPG, Prev: GPG Configuration, Up: Invoking GPG
5552 gpg -se -r 'Bob' 'file'
5553 sign and encrypt for user Bob
5555 gpg -clear-sign 'file'
5556 make a cleartext signature
5559 make a detached signature
5561 gpg -u 0x12345678 -sb 'file'
5562 make a detached signature with the key 0x12345678
5564 gpg -list-keys 'user_ID'
5567 gpg -fingerprint 'user_ID'
5570 gpg -verify 'pgpfile'
5571 gpg -verify 'sigfile' ['datafile']
5572 Verify the signature of the file but do not output the data unless
5573 requested. The second form is used for detached signatures, where
5574 'sigfile' is the detached signature (either ASCII armored or
5575 binary) and 'datafile' are the signed data; if this is not given,
5576 the name of the file holding the signed data is constructed by
5577 cutting off the extension (".asc" or ".sig") of 'sigfile' or by
5578 asking the user for the filename. If the option '--output' is also
5579 used the signed data is written to the file specified by that
5580 option; use '-' to write the signed data to stdout.
5585 The options '--import-filter' and '--export-filter' use expressions with
5586 this syntax (square brackets indicate an optional part and curly braces
5587 a repetition, white space between the elements are allowed):
5589 [lc] {[{flag}] PROPNAME op VALUE [lc]}
5591 The name of a property (PROPNAME) may only consist of letters, digits
5592 and underscores. The description for the filter type describes which
5593 properties are defined. If an undefined property is used it evaluates
5594 to the empty string. Unless otherwise noted, the VALUE must always be
5595 given and may not be the empty string. No quoting is defined for the
5596 value, thus the value may not contain the strings '&&' or '||', which
5597 are used as logical connection operators. The flag '--' can be used to
5598 remove this restriction.
5600 Numerical values are computed as long int; standard C notation
5601 applies. LC is the logical connection operator; either '&&' for a
5602 conjunction or '||' for a disjunction. A conjunction is assumed at the
5603 begin of an expression. Conjunctions have higher precedence than
5604 disjunctions. If VALUE starts with one of the characters used in any OP
5605 a space after the OP is required.
5607 The supported operators (OP) are:
5610 Substring must match.
5613 Substring must not match.
5616 The full string must match.
5619 The full string must not match.
5622 The numerical value must match.
5625 The numerical value must not match.
5628 The numerical value of the field must be LE than the value.
5631 The numerical value of the field must be LT than the value.
5634 The numerical value of the field must be GT than the value.
5637 The numerical value of the field must be GE than the value.
5640 The string value of the field must be less or equal than the value.
5643 The string value of the field must be less than the value.
5646 The string value of the field must be greater than the value.
5649 The string value of the field must be greater or equal than the
5653 True if value is not empty (no value allowed).
5656 True if value is empty (no value allowed).
5659 Alias for "PROPNAME != 0" (no value allowed).
5662 Alias for "PROPNAME == 0" (no value allowed).
5664 Values for FLAG must be space separated. The supported flags are:
5667 VALUE spans to the end of the expression.
5669 The string match in this part is done case-sensitive.
5671 The filter options concatenate several specifications for a filter of
5672 the same type. For example the four options in this example:
5674 --import-filter keep-uid="uid =~ Alfa"
5675 --import-filter keep-uid="&& uid !~ Test"
5676 --import-filter keep-uid="|| uid =~ Alpha"
5677 --import-filter keep-uid="uid !~ Test"
5679 which is equivalent to
5682 keep-uid="uid =~ Alfa" && uid !~ Test" || uid =~ Alpha" && "uid !~ Test"
5684 imports only the user ids of a key containing the strings "Alfa" or
5685 "Alpha" but not the string "test".
5690 The program returns 0 if there are no severe errors, 1 if at least a
5691 signature was bad, and other error codes for fatal errors.
5693 Note that signature verification requires exact knowledge of what has
5694 been signed and by whom it has beensigned. Using only the return code
5695 is thus not an appropriate way to verify a signature by a script.
5696 Either make proper use or the status codes or use the 'gpgv' tool which
5697 has been designed to make signature verification easy for scripts.
5702 Use a good password for your user account and make sure that all
5703 security issues are always fixed on your machine. Also employ diligent
5704 physical protection to your machine. Consider to use a good passphrase
5705 as a last resort protection to your secret key in the case your machine
5706 gets stolen. It is important that your secret key is never leaked.
5707 Using an easy to carry around token or smartcard with the secret key is
5710 If you are going to verify detached signatures, make sure that the
5711 program knows about it; either give both filenames on the command line
5712 or use '-' to specify STDIN.
5714 For scripted or other unattended use of 'gpg' make sure to use the
5715 machine-parseable interface and not the default interface which is
5716 intended for direct use by humans. The machine-parseable interface
5717 provides a stable and well documented API independent of the locale or
5718 future changes of 'gpg'. To enable this interface use the options
5719 '--with-colons' and '--status-fd'. For certain operations the option
5720 '--command-fd' may come handy too. See this man page and the file
5721 'DETAILS' for the specification of the interface. Note that the GnuPG
5722 "info" pages as well as the PDF version of the GnuPG manual features a
5723 chapter on unattended use of GnuPG. As an alternative the library
5724 'GPGME' can be used as a high-level abstraction on top of that
5727 INTEROPERABILITY WITH OTHER OPENPGP PROGRAMS
5728 ********************************************
5730 GnuPG tries to be a very flexible implementation of the OpenPGP
5731 standard. In particular, GnuPG implements many of the optional parts of
5732 the standard, such as the SHA-512 hash, and the ZLIB and BZIP2
5733 compression algorithms. It is important to be aware that not all
5734 OpenPGP programs implement these optional algorithms and that by forcing
5735 their use via the '--cipher-algo', '--digest-algo',
5736 '--cert-digest-algo', or '--compress-algo' options in GnuPG, it is
5737 possible to create a perfectly valid OpenPGP message, but one that
5738 cannot be read by the intended recipient.
5740 There are dozens of variations of OpenPGP programs available, and
5741 each supports a slightly different subset of these optional algorithms.
5742 For example, until recently, no (unhacked) version of PGP supported the
5743 BLOWFISH cipher algorithm. A message using BLOWFISH simply could not be
5744 read by a PGP user. By default, GnuPG uses the standard OpenPGP
5745 preferences system that will always do the right thing and create
5746 messages that are usable by all recipients, regardless of which OpenPGP
5747 program they use. Only override this safe default if you really know
5750 If you absolutely must override the safe default, or if the
5751 preferences on a given key are invalid for some reason, you are far
5752 better off using the '--pgp6', '--pgp7', or '--pgp8' options. These
5753 options are safe as they do not force any particular algorithms in
5754 violation of OpenPGP, but rather reduce the available algorithms to a
5760 On older systems this program should be installed as setuid(root). This
5761 is necessary to lock memory pages. Locking memory pages prevents the
5762 operating system from writing memory pages (which may contain
5763 passphrases or other sensitive material) to disk. If you get no warning
5764 message about insecure memory your operating system supports locking
5765 without being root. The program drops root privileges as soon as locked
5766 memory is allocated.
5768 Note also that some systems (especially laptops) have the ability to
5769 "suspend to disk" (also known as "safe sleep" or "hibernate"). This
5770 writes all memory to disk before going into a low power or even powered
5771 off mode. Unless measures are taken in the operating system to protect
5772 the saved memory, passphrases or other sensitive material may be
5773 recoverable from it later.
5775 Before you report a bug you should first search the mailing list
5776 archives for similar problems and second check whether such a bug has
5777 already been reported to our bug tracker at <https://bugs.gnupg.org>.
5780 File: gnupg.info, Node: Unattended Usage of GPG, Prev: GPG Examples, Up: Invoking GPG
5782 4.5 Unattended Usage
5783 ====================
5785 'gpg' is often used as a backend engine by other software. To help with
5786 this a machine interface has been defined to have an unambiguous way to
5787 do this. The options '--status-fd' and '--batch' are almost always
5792 * Programmatic use of GnuPG:: Programmatic use of GnuPG
5793 * Ephemeral home directories:: Ephemeral home directories
5794 * The quick key manipulation interface:: The quick key manipulation interface
5795 * Unattended GPG key generation:: Unattended key generation
5798 File: gnupg.info, Node: Programmatic use of GnuPG, Next: Ephemeral home directories, Up: Unattended Usage of GPG
5800 4.5.1 Programmatic use of GnuPG
5801 -------------------------------
5803 Please consider using GPGME instead of calling 'gpg' directly. GPGME
5804 offers a stable, backend-independent interface for many cryptographic
5805 operations. It supports OpenPGP and S/MIME, and also allows interaction
5806 with various GnuPG components.
5808 GPGME provides a C-API, and comes with bindings for C++, Qt, and
5809 Python. Bindings for other languages are available.
5812 File: gnupg.info, Node: Ephemeral home directories, Next: The quick key manipulation interface, Prev: Programmatic use of GnuPG, Up: Unattended Usage of GPG
5814 4.5.2 Ephemeral home directories
5815 --------------------------------
5817 Sometimes you want to contain effects of some operation, for example you
5818 want to import a key to inspect it, but you do not want this key to be
5819 added to your keyring. In earlier versions of GnuPG, it was possible to
5820 specify alternate keyring files for both public and secret keys. In
5821 modern GnuPG versions, however, we changed how secret keys are stored in
5822 order to better protect secret key material, and it was not possible to
5823 preserve this interface.
5825 The preferred way to do this is to use ephemeral home directories.
5826 This technique works across all versions of GnuPG.
5828 Create a temporary directory, create (or copy) a configuration that
5829 meets your needs, make 'gpg' use this directory either using the
5830 environment variable GNUPGHOME, or the option '--homedir'. GPGME
5831 supports this too on a per-context basis, by modifying the engine info
5832 of contexts. Now execute whatever operation you like, import and export
5833 key material as necessary. Once finished, you can delete the directory.
5834 All GnuPG backend services that were started will detect this and shut
5838 File: gnupg.info, Node: The quick key manipulation interface, Next: Unattended GPG key generation, Prev: Ephemeral home directories, Up: Unattended Usage of GPG
5840 4.5.3 The quick key manipulation interface
5841 ------------------------------------------
5843 Recent versions of GnuPG have an interface to manipulate keys without
5844 using the interactive command '--edit-key'. This interface was added
5845 mainly for the benefit of GPGME (please consider using GPGME, see the
5846 manual subsection "Programmatic use of GnuPG"). This interface is
5847 described in the subsection "How to manage your keys".
5850 File: gnupg.info, Node: Unattended GPG key generation, Prev: The quick key manipulation interface, Up: Unattended Usage of GPG
5852 4.5.4 Unattended key generation
5853 -------------------------------
5855 The command '--generate-key' may be used along with the option '--batch'
5856 for unattended key generation. This is the most flexible way of
5857 generating keys, but it is also the most complex one. Consider using
5858 the quick key manipulation interface described in the previous
5859 subsection "The quick key manipulation interface".
5861 The parameters for the key are either read from stdin or given as a
5862 file on the command line. The format of the parameter file is as
5865 * Text only, line length is limited to about 1000 characters.
5866 * UTF-8 encoding must be used to specify non-ASCII characters.
5867 * Empty lines are ignored.
5868 * Leading and trailing white space is ignored.
5869 * A hash sign as the first non white space character indicates a
5871 * Control statements are indicated by a leading percent sign, the
5872 arguments are separated by white space from the keyword.
5873 * Parameters are specified by a keyword, followed by a colon.
5874 Arguments are separated by white space.
5875 * The first parameter must be 'Key-Type'; control statements may be
5877 * The order of the parameters does not matter except for 'Key-Type'
5878 which must be the first parameter. The parameters are only used
5879 for the generated keyblock (primary and subkeys); parameters from
5880 previous sets are not used. Some syntactically checks may be
5882 * Key generation takes place when either the end of the parameter
5883 file is reached, the next 'Key-Type' parameter is encountered or at
5884 the control statement '%commit' is encountered.
5889 Print TEXT as diagnostic.
5892 Suppress actual key generation (useful for syntax checking).
5895 Perform the key generation. Note that an implicit commit is done
5896 at the next Key-Type parameter.
5899 Do not write the key to the default or commandline given keyring
5900 but to FILENAME. This must be given before the first commit to
5901 take place, duplicate specification of the same filename is
5902 ignored, the last filename before a commit is used. The filename
5903 is used until a new filename is used (at commit points) and all
5904 keys are written to that file. If a new filename is given, this
5905 file is created (and overwrites an existing one).
5907 See the previous subsection "Ephemeral home directories" for a more
5908 robust way to contain side-effects.
5911 This option is a no-op for GnuPG 2.1 and later.
5913 See the previous subsection "Ephemeral home directories".
5917 This option is a no-op for GnuPG 2.1 and later.
5920 Using this option allows the creation of keys without any
5921 passphrase protection. This option is mainly intended for
5925 If given the keys are created using a faster and a somewhat less
5926 secure random number generator. This option may be used for keys
5927 which are only used for a short time and do not require full
5928 cryptographic strength. It takes only effect if used together with
5929 the control statement '%no-protection'.
5934 Starts a new parameter block by giving the type of the primary key.
5935 The algorithm must be capable of signing. This is a required
5936 parameter. ALGO may either be an OpenPGP algorithm number or a
5937 string with the algorithm name. The special value 'default' may be
5938 used for ALGO to create the default key type; in this case a
5939 'Key-Usage' shall not be given and 'default' also be used for
5943 The requested length of the generated key in bits. The default is
5944 returned by running the command 'gpg --gpgconf-list'. For ECC keys
5945 this parameter is ignored.
5948 The requested elliptic curve of the generated key. This is a
5949 required parameter for ECC keys. It is ignored for non-ECC keys.
5952 This is optional and used to generate a CSR or certificate for an
5953 already existing key. Key-Length will be ignored when given.
5955 Key-Usage: USAGE-LIST
5956 Space or comma delimited list of key usages. Allowed values are
5957 'encrypt', 'sign', and 'auth'. This is used to generate the key
5958 flags. Please make sure that the algorithm is capable of this
5959 usage. Note that OpenPGP requires that all primary keys are
5960 capable of certification, so no matter what usage is given here,
5961 the 'cert' flag will be on. If no 'Key-Usage' is specified and the
5962 'Key-Type' is not 'default', all allowed usages for that particular
5963 algorithm are used; if it is not given but 'default' is used the
5964 usage will be 'sign'.
5967 This generates a secondary key (subkey). Currently only one subkey
5968 can be handled. See also 'Key-Type' above.
5970 Subkey-Length: NBITS
5971 Length of the secondary key (subkey) in bits. The default is
5972 returned by running the command 'gpg --gpgconf-list'.
5975 Key curve for a subkey; similar to 'Key-Curve'.
5977 Subkey-Usage: USAGE-LIST
5978 Key usage lists for a subkey; similar to 'Key-Usage'.
5981 If you want to specify a passphrase for the secret key, enter it
5982 here. Default is to use the Pinentry dialog to ask for a
5986 Name-Comment: COMMENT
5988 The three parts of a user name. Remember to use UTF-8 encoding
5989 here. If you don't give any of them, no user ID is created.
5991 Expire-Date: ISO-DATE|(NUMBER[d|w|m|y])
5992 Set the expiration date for the key (and the subkey). It may
5993 either be entered in ISO date format (e.g. "20000815T145012") or
5994 as number of days, weeks, month or years after the creation date.
5995 The special notation "seconds=N" is also allowed to specify a
5996 number of seconds since creation. Without a letter days are
5997 assumed. Note that there is no check done on the overflow of the
5998 type used by OpenPGP for timestamps. Thus you better make sure
5999 that the given value make sense. Although OpenPGP works with time
6000 intervals, GnuPG uses an absolute value internally and thus the
6001 last year we can represent is 2105.
6003 Creation-Date: ISO-DATE
6004 Set the creation date of the key as stored in the key information
6005 and which is also part of the fingerprint calculation. Either a
6006 date like "1986-04-26" or a full timestamp like "19860426T042640"
6007 may be used. The time is considered to be UTC. The special
6008 notation "seconds=N" may be used to directly specify a the number
6009 of seconds since Epoch (Unix time). If it is not given the current
6013 Set the cipher, hash, and compression preference values for this
6014 key. This expects the same type of string as the sub-command
6015 'setpref' in the '--edit-key' menu.
6017 Revoker: ALGO:FPR [sensitive]
6018 Add a designated revoker to the generated key. Algo is the public
6019 key algorithm of the designated revoker (i.e. RSA=1, DSA=17, etc.)
6020 FPR is the fingerprint of the designated revoker. The optional
6021 'sensitive' flag marks the designated revoker as sensitive
6022 information. Only v4 keys may be designated revokers.
6025 This is an optional parameter that specifies the preferred
6026 keyserver URL for the key.
6029 This is an optional parameter only used with the status lines
6030 KEY_CREATED and KEY_NOT_CREATED. STRING may be up to 100 characters
6031 and should not contain spaces. It is useful for batch key
6032 generation to associate a key parameter block with a status line.
6034 Here is an example on how to create a key in an ephemeral home
6036 $ export GNUPGHOME="$(mktemp -d)"
6038 %echo Generating a basic OpenPGP key
6043 Name-Real: Joe Tester
6044 Name-Comment: with stupid passphrase
6045 Name-Email: joe@foo.bar
6048 # Do a commit here, so that we can later print "done" :-)
6052 $ gpg --batch --generate-key foo
6054 $ gpg --list-secret-keys
6055 /tmp/tmp.0NQxB74PEf/pubring.kbx
6056 -------------------------------
6057 sec dsa1024 2016-12-16 [SCA]
6058 768E895903FC1C44045C8CB95EEBDB71E9E849D0
6059 uid [ultimate] Joe Tester (with stupid passphrase) <joe@foo.bar>
6060 ssb elg1024 2016-12-16 [E]
6062 If you want to create a key with the default algorithms you would use
6064 %echo Generating a default key
6066 Subkey-Type: default
6067 Name-Real: Joe Tester
6068 Name-Comment: with stupid passphrase
6069 Name-Email: joe@foo.bar
6072 # Do a commit here, so that we can later print "done" :-)
6077 File: gnupg.info, Node: Invoking GPGSM, Next: Invoking SCDAEMON, Prev: Invoking GPG, Up: Top
6082 'gpgsm' is a tool similar to 'gpg' to provide digital encryption and
6083 signing services on X.509 certificates and the CMS protocol. It is
6084 mainly used as a backend for S/MIME mail processing. 'gpgsm' includes a
6085 full featured certificate management and complies with all rules defined
6086 for the German Sphinx project.
6088 *Note Option Index::, for an index to 'GPGSM''s commands and options.
6092 * GPGSM Commands:: List of all commands.
6093 * GPGSM Options:: List of all options.
6094 * GPGSM Configuration:: Configuration files.
6095 * GPGSM Examples:: Some usage examples.
6097 Developer information:
6098 * Unattended Usage:: Using 'gpgsm' from other programs.
6099 * GPGSM Protocol:: The protocol the server mode uses.
6102 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPGSM Commands, Next: GPGSM Options, Up: Invoking GPGSM
6107 Commands are not distinguished from options except for the fact that
6108 only one command is allowed.
6112 * General GPGSM Commands:: Commands not specific to the functionality.
6113 * Operational GPGSM Commands:: Commands to select the type of operation.
6114 * Certificate Management:: How to manage certificates.
6117 File: gnupg.info, Node: General GPGSM Commands, Next: Operational GPGSM Commands, Up: GPGSM Commands
6119 5.1.1 Commands not specific to the function
6120 -------------------------------------------
6123 Print the program version and licensing information. Note that you
6124 cannot abbreviate this command.
6127 Print a usage message summarizing the most useful command-line
6128 options. Note that you cannot abbreviate this command.
6131 Print warranty information. Note that you cannot abbreviate this
6135 Print a list of all available options and commands. Note that you
6136 cannot abbreviate this command.
6139 File: gnupg.info, Node: Operational GPGSM Commands, Next: Certificate Management, Prev: General GPGSM Commands, Up: GPGSM Commands
6141 5.1.2 Commands to select the type of operation
6142 ----------------------------------------------
6145 Perform an encryption. The keys the data is encrypted to must be
6146 set using the option '--recipient'.
6149 Perform a decryption; the type of input is automatically
6150 determined. It may either be in binary form or PEM encoded;
6151 automatic determination of base-64 encoding is not done.
6154 Create a digital signature. The key used is either the fist one
6155 found in the keybox or those set with the '--local-user' option.
6158 Check a signature file for validity. Depending on the arguments a
6159 detached signature may also be checked.
6162 Run in server mode and wait for commands on the 'stdin'.
6164 '--call-dirmngr COMMAND [ARGS]'
6165 Behave as a Dirmngr client issuing the request COMMAND with the
6166 optional list of ARGS. The output of the Dirmngr is printed
6167 stdout. Please note that file names given as arguments should have
6168 an absolute file name (i.e. commencing with '/') because they are
6169 passed verbatim to the Dirmngr and the working directory of the
6170 Dirmngr might not be the same as the one of this client. Currently
6171 it is not possible to pass data via stdin to the Dirmngr. COMMAND
6172 should not contain spaces.
6174 This is command is required for certain maintaining tasks of the
6175 dirmngr where a dirmngr must be able to call back to 'gpgsm'. See
6176 the Dirmngr manual for details.
6178 '--call-protect-tool ARGUMENTS'
6179 Certain maintenance operations are done by an external program call
6180 'gpg-protect-tool'; this is usually not installed in a directory
6181 listed in the PATH variable. This command provides a simple
6182 wrapper to access this tool. ARGUMENTS are passed verbatim to this
6183 command; use '--help' to get a list of supported operations.
6186 File: gnupg.info, Node: Certificate Management, Prev: Operational GPGSM Commands, Up: GPGSM Commands
6188 5.1.3 How to manage the certificates and keys
6189 ---------------------------------------------
6193 This command allows the creation of a certificate signing request
6194 or a self-signed certificate. It is commonly used along with the
6195 '--output' option to save the created CSR or certificate into a
6196 file. If used with the '--batch' a parameter file is used to
6197 create the CSR or certificate and it is further possible to create
6198 non-self-signed certificates.
6202 List all available certificates stored in the local key database.
6203 Note that the displayed data might be reformatted for better human
6204 readability and illegal characters are replaced by safe
6207 '--list-secret-keys'
6209 List all available certificates for which a corresponding a secret
6212 '--list-external-keys PATTERN'
6213 List certificates matching PATTERN using an external server. This
6214 utilizes the 'dirmngr' service.
6217 Same as '--list-keys' but also prints all keys making up the chain.
6221 List all available certificates stored in the local key database
6222 using a format useful mainly for debugging.
6225 Same as '--dump-keys' but also prints all keys making up the chain.
6227 '--dump-secret-keys'
6228 List all available certificates for which a corresponding a secret
6229 key is available using a format useful mainly for debugging.
6231 '--dump-external-keys PATTERN'
6232 List certificates matching PATTERN using an external server. This
6233 utilizes the 'dirmngr' service. It uses a format useful mainly for
6236 '--keydb-clear-some-cert-flags'
6237 This is a debugging aid to reset certain flags in the key database
6238 which are used to cache certain certificate stati. It is
6239 especially useful if a bad CRL or a weird running OCSP responder
6240 did accidentally revoke certificate. There is no security issue
6241 with this command because 'gpgsm' always make sure that the
6242 validity of a certificate is checked right before it is used.
6244 '--delete-keys PATTERN'
6245 Delete the keys matching PATTERN. Note that there is no command to
6246 delete the secret part of the key directly. In case you need to do
6247 this, you should run the command 'gpgsm --dump-secret-keys KEYID'
6248 before you delete the key, copy the string of hex-digits in the
6249 "keygrip" line and delete the file consisting of these hex-digits
6250 and the suffix '.key' from the 'private-keys-v1.d' directory below
6251 our GnuPG home directory (usually '~/.gnupg').
6253 '--export [PATTERN]'
6254 Export all certificates stored in the Keybox or those specified by
6255 the optional PATTERN. Those pattern consist of a list of user ids
6256 (*note how-to-specify-a-user-id::). When used along with the
6257 '--armor' option a few informational lines are prepended before
6258 each block. There is one limitation: As there is no commonly
6259 agreed upon way to pack more than one certificate into an ASN.1
6260 structure, the binary export (i.e. without using 'armor') works
6261 only for the export of one certificate. Thus it is required to
6262 specify a PATTERN which yields exactly one certificate. Ephemeral
6263 certificate are only exported if all PATTERN are given as
6264 fingerprints or keygrips.
6266 '--export-secret-key-p12 KEY-ID'
6267 Export the private key and the certificate identified by KEY-ID
6268 using the PKCS#12 format. When used with the '--armor' option a
6269 few informational lines are prepended to the output. Note, that
6270 the PKCS#12 format is not very secure and proper transport security
6271 should be used to convey the exported key. (*Note option
6274 '--export-secret-key-p8 KEY-ID'
6275 '--export-secret-key-raw KEY-ID'
6276 Export the private key of the certificate identified by KEY-ID with
6277 any encryption stripped. The '...-raw' command exports in PKCS#1
6278 format; the '...-p8' command exports in PKCS#8 format. When used
6279 with the '--armor' option a few informational lines are prepended
6280 to the output. These commands are useful to prepare a key for use
6284 Import the certificates from the PEM or binary encoded files as
6285 well as from signed-only messages. This command may also be used
6286 to import a secret key from a PKCS#12 file.
6289 Read information about the private keys from the smartcard and
6290 import the certificates from there. This command utilizes the
6291 'gpg-agent' and in turn the 'scdaemon'.
6293 '--change-passphrase USER_ID'
6295 Change the passphrase of the private key belonging to the
6296 certificate specified as USER_ID. Note, that changing the
6297 passphrase/PIN of a smartcard is not yet supported.
6300 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPGSM Options, Next: GPGSM Configuration, Prev: GPGSM Commands, Up: Invoking GPGSM
6305 'GPGSM' features a bunch of options to control the exact behaviour and
6306 to change the default configuration.
6310 * Configuration Options:: How to change the configuration.
6311 * Certificate Options:: Certificate related options.
6312 * Input and Output:: Input and Output.
6313 * CMS Options:: How to change how the CMS is created.
6314 * Esoteric Options:: Doing things one usually do not want to do.
6317 File: gnupg.info, Node: Configuration Options, Next: Certificate Options, Up: GPGSM Options
6319 5.2.1 How to change the configuration
6320 -------------------------------------
6322 These options are used to change the configuration and are usually found
6326 Reads configuration from FILE instead of from the default per-user
6327 configuration file. The default configuration file is named
6328 'gpgsm.conf' and expected in the '.gnupg' directory directly below
6329 the home directory of the user.
6332 Set the name of the home directory to DIR. If this option is not
6333 used, the home directory defaults to '~/.gnupg'. It is only
6334 recognized when given on the command line. It also overrides any
6335 home directory stated through the environment variable 'GNUPGHOME'
6336 or (on Windows systems) by means of the Registry entry
6337 HKCU\SOFTWARE\GNU\GNUPG:HOMEDIR.
6339 On Windows systems it is possible to install GnuPG as a portable
6340 application. In this case only this command line option is
6341 considered, all other ways to set a home directory are ignored.
6343 To install GnuPG as a portable application under Windows, create an
6344 empty file named 'gpgconf.ctl' in the same directory as the tool
6345 'gpgconf.exe'. The root of the installation is then that
6346 directory; or, if 'gpgconf.exe' has been installed directly below a
6347 directory named 'bin', its parent directory. You also need to make
6348 sure that the following directories exist and are writable:
6349 'ROOT/home' for the GnuPG home and 'ROOT/usr/local/var/cache/gnupg'
6350 for internal cache files.
6354 Outputs additional information while running. You can increase the
6355 verbosity by giving several verbose commands to 'gpgsm', such as
6358 '--ldapserver STRING'
6359 '--keyserver STRING'
6360 Add an LDAP server to use for X.509 certificate and CRL lookup.
6361 This option can be given multiple times to configure more than one
6362 LDAP server. Note that in general 'dirmngr' should be configured
6363 with the list of LDAP servers; if this option is also configured
6364 here, it is used in addition to those configured in dirmngr. For
6365 the syntax see the description of dirmngr's ldapserver option.
6367 '--policy-file FILENAME'
6368 Change the default name of the policy file to FILENAME.
6370 '--agent-program FILE'
6371 Specify an agent program to be used for secret key operations. The
6372 default value is determined by running the command 'gpgconf'. Note
6373 that the pipe symbol ('|') is used for a regression test suite hack
6374 and may thus not be used in the file name.
6376 '--dirmngr-program FILE'
6377 Specify a dirmngr program to be used for CRL checks. The default
6378 value is '/usr/local/bin/dirmngr'.
6380 '--prefer-system-dirmngr'
6381 This option is obsolete and ignored.
6384 Entirely disable the use of the Dirmngr.
6387 Do not start the gpg-agent or the dirmngr if it has not yet been
6388 started and its service is required. This option is mostly useful
6389 on machines where the connection to gpg-agent has been redirected
6390 to another machines. If dirmngr is required on the remote machine,
6391 it may be started manually using 'gpgconf --launch dirmngr'.
6393 '--no-secmem-warning'
6394 Do not print a warning when the so called "secure memory" cannot be
6398 When running in server mode, append all logging output to FILE.
6399 Use 'socket://' to log to socket.
6402 File: gnupg.info, Node: Certificate Options, Next: Input and Output, Prev: Configuration Options, Up: GPGSM Options
6404 5.2.2 Certificate related options
6405 ---------------------------------
6407 '--enable-policy-checks'
6408 '--disable-policy-checks'
6409 By default policy checks are enabled. These options may be used to
6412 '--enable-crl-checks'
6413 '--disable-crl-checks'
6414 By default the CRL checks are enabled and the DirMngr is used to
6415 check for revoked certificates. The disable option is most useful
6416 with an off-line network connection to suppress this check and also
6417 to avoid that new certificates introduce a web bug by including a
6418 certificate specific CRL DP. The disable option also disables an
6419 issuer certificate lookup via the authorityInfoAccess property of
6420 the certificate; the '--enable-issuer-key-retrieve' can be used to
6421 make use of that property anyway.
6423 '--enable-trusted-cert-crl-check'
6424 '--disable-trusted-cert-crl-check'
6425 By default the CRL for trusted root certificates are checked like
6426 for any other certificates. This allows a CA to revoke its own
6427 certificates voluntary without the need of putting all ever issued
6428 certificates into a CRL. The disable option may be used to switch
6429 this extra check off. Due to the caching done by the Dirmngr,
6430 there will not be any noticeable performance gain. Note, that this
6431 also disables possible OCSP checks for trusted root certificates.
6432 A more specific way of disabling this check is by adding the
6433 "relax" keyword to the root CA line of the 'trustlist.txt'
6435 '--force-crl-refresh'
6436 Tell the dirmngr to reload the CRL for each request. For better
6437 performance, the dirmngr will actually optimize this by suppressing
6438 the loading for short time intervals (e.g. 30 minutes). This
6439 option is useful to make sure that a fresh CRL is available for
6440 certificates hold in the keybox. The suggested way of doing this
6441 is by using it along with the option '--with-validation' for a key
6442 listing command. This option should not be used in a configuration
6445 '--enable-issuer-based-crl-check'
6446 Run a CRL check even for certificates which do not have any CRL
6447 distribution point. This requires that a suitable LDAP server has
6448 been configured in Dirmngr and that the CRL can be found using the
6449 issuer. This option reverts to what GnuPG did up to version
6450 2.2.20. This option is in general not useful.
6454 By default OCSP checks are disabled. The enable option may be used
6455 to enable OCSP checks via Dirmngr. If CRL checks are also enabled,
6456 CRLs will be used as a fallback if for some reason an OCSP request
6457 will not succeed. Note, that you have to allow OCSP requests in
6458 Dirmngr's configuration too (option '--allow-ocsp') and configure
6459 Dirmngr properly. If you do not do so you will get the error code
6462 '--auto-issuer-key-retrieve'
6463 If a required certificate is missing while validating the chain of
6464 certificates, try to load that certificate from an external
6465 location. This usually means that Dirmngr is employed to search
6466 for the certificate. Note that this option makes a "web bug" like
6467 behavior possible. LDAP server operators can see which keys you
6468 request, so by sending you a message signed by a brand new key
6469 (which you naturally will not have on your local keybox), the
6470 operator can tell both your IP address and the time when you
6471 verified the signature.
6473 '--validation-model NAME'
6474 This option changes the default validation model. The only
6475 possible values are "shell" (which is the default), "chain" which
6476 forces the use of the chain model and "steed" for a new simplified
6477 model. The chain model is also used if an option in the
6478 'trustlist.txt' or an attribute of the certificate requests it.
6479 However the standard model (shell) is in that case always tried
6482 '--ignore-cert-extension OID'
6483 Add OID to the list of ignored certificate extensions. The OID is
6484 expected to be in dotted decimal form, like '2.5.29.3'. This
6485 option may be used more than once. Critical flagged certificate
6486 extensions matching one of the OIDs in the list are treated as if
6487 they are actually handled and thus the certificate will not be
6488 rejected due to an unknown critical extension. Use this option
6489 with care because extensions are usually flagged as critical for a
6493 File: gnupg.info, Node: Input and Output, Next: CMS Options, Prev: Certificate Options, Up: GPGSM Options
6495 5.2.3 Input and Output
6496 ----------------------
6500 Create PEM encoded output. Default is binary output.
6503 Create Base-64 encoded output; i.e. PEM without the header lines.
6506 Assume the input data is PEM encoded. Default is to autodetect the
6507 encoding but this is may fail.
6510 Assume the input data is plain base-64 encoded.
6513 Assume the input data is binary encoded.
6515 '--p12-charset NAME'
6516 'gpgsm' uses the UTF-8 encoding when encoding passphrases for
6517 PKCS#12 files. This option may be used to force the passphrase to
6518 be encoded in the specified encoding NAME. This is useful if the
6519 application used to import the key uses a different encoding and
6520 thus will not be able to import a file generated by 'gpgsm'.
6521 Commonly used values for NAME are 'Latin1' and 'CP850'. Note that
6522 'gpgsm' itself automagically imports any file with a passphrase
6523 encoded to the most commonly used encodings.
6525 '--default-key USER_ID'
6526 Use USER_ID as the standard key for signing. This key is used if
6527 no other key has been defined as a signing key. Note, that the
6528 first '--local-users' option also sets this key if it has not yet
6529 been set; however '--default-key' always overrides this.
6531 '--local-user USER_ID'
6533 Set the user(s) to be used for signing. The default is the first
6534 secret key found in the database.
6538 Encrypt to the user id NAME. There are several ways a user id may
6539 be given (*note how-to-specify-a-user-id::).
6543 Write output to FILE. The default is to write it to stdout.
6546 Displays extra information with the '--list-keys' commands.
6547 Especially a line tagged 'grp' is printed which tells you the
6548 keygrip of a key. This string is for example used as the file name
6549 of the secret key. Implies '--with-colons'.
6552 When doing a key listing, do a full validation check for each key
6553 and print the result. This is usually a slow operation because it
6554 requires a CRL lookup and other operations.
6556 When used along with '--import', a validation of the certificate to
6557 import is done and only imported if it succeeds the test. Note
6558 that this does not affect an already available certificate in the
6559 DB. This option is therefore useful to simply verify a certificate.
6561 '--with-md5-fingerprint'
6562 For standard key listings, also print the MD5 fingerprint of the
6566 Include the keygrip in standard key listings. Note that the
6567 keygrip is always listed in '--with-colons' mode.
6570 Include info about the presence of a secret key in public key
6571 listings done with '--with-colons'.
6574 File: gnupg.info, Node: CMS Options, Next: Esoteric Options, Prev: Input and Output, Up: GPGSM Options
6576 5.2.4 How to change how the CMS is created
6577 ------------------------------------------
6580 Using N of -2 includes all certificate except for the root cert, -1
6581 includes all certs, 0 does not include any certs, 1 includes only
6582 the signers cert and all other positive values include up to N
6583 certificates starting with the signer cert. The default is -2.
6586 Use the cipher algorithm with the ASN.1 object identifier OID for
6587 encryption. For convenience the strings '3DES', 'AES' and 'AES256'
6588 may be used instead of their OIDs. The default is 'AES'
6589 (2.16.840.1.101.3.4.1.2).
6591 '--digest-algo name'
6592 Use 'name' as the message digest algorithm. Usually this algorithm
6593 is deduced from the respective signing certificate. This option
6594 forces the use of the given algorithm and may lead to severe
6595 interoperability problems.
6598 File: gnupg.info, Node: Esoteric Options, Prev: CMS Options, Up: GPGSM Options
6600 5.2.5 Doing things one usually do not want to do
6601 ------------------------------------------------
6603 '--extra-digest-algo NAME'
6604 Sometimes signatures are broken in that they announce a different
6605 digest algorithm than actually used. 'gpgsm' uses a one-pass data
6606 processing model and thus needs to rely on the announced digest
6607 algorithms to properly hash the data. As a workaround this option
6608 may be used to tell 'gpgsm' to also hash the data using the
6609 algorithm NAME; this slows processing down a little bit but allows
6610 verification of such broken signatures. If 'gpgsm' prints an error
6611 like "digest algo 8 has not been enabled" you may want to try this
6612 option, with 'SHA256' for NAME.
6614 '--faked-system-time EPOCH'
6615 This option is only useful for testing; it sets the system time
6616 back or forth to EPOCH which is the number of seconds elapsed since
6617 the year 1970. Alternatively EPOCH may be given as a full ISO time
6618 string (e.g. "20070924T154812").
6620 '--with-ephemeral-keys'
6621 Include ephemeral flagged keys in the output of key listings. Note
6622 that they are included anyway if the key specification for a
6623 listing is given as fingerprint or keygrip.
6625 '--debug-level LEVEL'
6626 Select the debug level for investigating problems. LEVEL may be a
6627 numeric value or by a keyword:
6630 No debugging at all. A value of less than 1 may be used
6631 instead of the keyword.
6633 Some basic debug messages. A value between 1 and 2 may be
6634 used instead of the keyword.
6636 More verbose debug messages. A value between 3 and 5 may be
6637 used instead of the keyword.
6639 Even more detailed messages. A value between 6 and 8 may be
6640 used instead of the keyword.
6642 All of the debug messages you can get. A value greater than 8
6643 may be used instead of the keyword. The creation of hash
6644 tracing files is only enabled if the keyword is used.
6646 How these messages are mapped to the actual debugging flags is not
6647 specified and may change with newer releases of this program. They
6648 are however carefully selected to best aid in debugging.
6651 This option is only useful for debugging and the behaviour may
6652 change at any time without notice; using '--debug-levels' is the
6653 preferred method to select the debug verbosity. FLAGS are bit
6654 encoded and may be given in usual C-Syntax. The currently defined
6658 X.509 or OpenPGP protocol related data
6660 values of big number integers
6662 low level crypto operations
6668 show memory statistics
6670 write hashed data to files named 'dbgmd-000*'
6672 trace Assuan protocol
6674 Note, that all flags set using this option may get overridden by
6678 Same as '--debug=0xffffffff'
6680 '--debug-allow-core-dump'
6681 Usually 'gpgsm' tries to avoid dumping core by well written code
6682 and by disabling core dumps for security reasons. However, bugs
6683 are pretty durable beasts and to squash them it is sometimes useful
6684 to have a core dump. This option enables core dumps unless the Bad
6685 Thing happened before the option parsing.
6687 '--debug-no-chain-validation'
6688 This is actually not a debugging option but only useful as such.
6689 It lets 'gpgsm' bypass all certificate chain validation checks.
6691 '--debug-ignore-expiration'
6692 This is actually not a debugging option but only useful as such.
6693 It lets 'gpgsm' ignore all notAfter dates, this is used by the
6697 Read the passphrase from file descriptor 'n'. Only the first line
6698 will be read from file descriptor 'n'. If you use 0 for 'n', the
6699 passphrase will be read from STDIN. This can only be used if only
6700 one passphrase is supplied.
6702 Note that this passphrase is only used if the option '--batch' has
6705 '--pinentry-mode mode'
6706 Set the pinentry mode to 'mode'. Allowed values for 'mode' are:
6708 Use the default of the agent, which is 'ask'.
6710 Force the use of the Pinentry.
6712 Emulate use of Pinentry's cancel button.
6714 Return a Pinentry error ("No Pinentry").
6716 Redirect Pinentry queries to the caller. Note that in
6717 contrast to Pinentry the user is not prompted again if he
6718 enters a bad password.
6720 '--request-origin ORIGIN'
6721 Tell gpgsm to assume that the operation ultimately originated at
6722 ORIGIN. Depending on the origin certain restrictions are applied
6723 and the Pinentry may include an extra note on the origin.
6724 Supported values for ORIGIN are: 'local' which is the default,
6725 'remote' to indicate a remote origin or 'browser' for an operation
6726 requested by a web browser.
6728 '--no-common-certs-import'
6729 Suppress the import of common certificates on keybox creation.
6731 All the long options may also be given in the configuration file
6732 after stripping off the two leading dashes.
6735 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPGSM Configuration, Next: GPGSM Examples, Prev: GPGSM Options, Up: Invoking GPGSM
6737 5.3 Configuration files
6738 =======================
6740 There are a few configuration files to control certain aspects of
6741 'gpgsm''s operation. Unless noted, they are expected in the current
6742 home directory (*note option --homedir::).
6745 This is the standard configuration file read by 'gpgsm' on startup.
6746 It may contain any valid long option; the leading two dashes may
6747 not be entered and the option may not be abbreviated. This default
6748 name may be changed on the command line (*note gpgsm-option
6749 --options::). You should backup this file.
6752 This is a list of allowed CA policies. This file should list the
6753 object identifiers of the policies line by line. Empty lines and
6754 lines starting with a hash mark are ignored. Policies missing in
6755 this file and not marked as critical in the certificate will print
6756 only a warning; certificates with policies marked as critical and
6757 not listed in this file will fail the signature verification. You
6758 should backup this file.
6760 For example, to allow only the policy 2.289.9.9, the file should
6767 This is the list of root certificates used for qualified
6768 certificates. They are defined as certificates capable of creating
6769 legally binding signatures in the same way as handwritten
6770 signatures are. Comments start with a hash mark and empty lines
6771 are ignored. Lines do have a length limit but this is not a
6772 serious limitation as the format of the entries is fixed and
6773 checked by 'gpgsm': A non-comment line starts with optional
6774 whitespace, followed by exactly 40 hex characters, white space and
6775 a lowercased 2 letter country code. Additional data delimited with
6776 by a white space is current ignored but might late be used for
6779 Note that even if a certificate is listed in this file, this does
6780 not mean that the certificate is trusted; in general the
6781 certificates listed in this file need to be listed also in
6784 This is a global file an installed in the data directory (e.g.
6785 '/usr/local/share/gnupg/qualified.txt'). GnuPG installs a suitable
6786 file with root certificates as used in Germany. As new Root-CA
6787 certificates may be issued over time, these entries may need to be
6788 updated; new distributions of this software should come with an
6789 updated list but it is still the responsibility of the
6790 Administrator to check that this list is correct.
6792 Every time 'gpgsm' uses a certificate for signing or verification
6793 this file will be consulted to check whether the certificate under
6794 question has ultimately been issued by one of these CAs. If this
6795 is the case the user will be informed that the verified signature
6796 represents a legally binding ("qualified") signature. When
6797 creating a signature using such a certificate an extra prompt will
6798 be issued to let the user confirm that such a legally binding
6799 signature shall really be created.
6801 Because this software has not yet been approved for use with such
6802 certificates, appropriate notices will be shown to indicate this
6806 This is plain text file with a few help entries used with
6807 'pinentry' as well as a large list of help items for 'gpg' and
6808 'gpgsm'. The standard file has English help texts; to install
6809 localized versions use filenames like 'help.LL.txt' with LL
6810 denoting the locale. GnuPG comes with a set of predefined help
6811 files in the data directory (e.g.
6812 '/usr/local/share/gnupg/gnupg/help.de.txt') and allows overriding
6813 of any help item by help files stored in the system configuration
6814 directory (e.g. '/etc/gnupg/help.de.txt'). For a reference of the
6815 help file's syntax, please see the installed 'help.txt' file.
6818 This file is a collection of common certificates used to populated
6819 a newly created 'pubring.kbx'. An administrator may replace this
6820 file with a custom one. The format is a concatenation of PEM
6821 encoded X.509 certificates. This global file is installed in the
6822 data directory (e.g. '/usr/local/share/gnupg/com-certs.pem').
6824 Note that on larger installations, it is useful to put predefined
6825 files into the directory '/etc/skel/.gnupg/' so that newly created users
6826 start up with a working configuration. For existing users a small
6827 helper script is provided to create these files (*note addgnupghome::).
6829 For internal purposes 'gpgsm' creates and maintains a few other
6830 files; they all live in the current home directory (*note option
6831 --homedir::). Only 'gpgsm' may modify these files.
6834 This a database file storing the certificates as well as meta
6835 information. For debugging purposes the tool 'kbxutil' may be used
6836 to show the internal structure of this file. You should backup
6840 This content of this file is used to maintain the internal state of
6841 the random number generator across invocations. The same file is
6842 used by other programs of this software too.
6845 If this file exists 'gpgsm' will first try to connect to this
6846 socket for accessing 'gpg-agent' before starting a new 'gpg-agent'
6847 instance. Under Windows this socket (which in reality be a plain
6848 file describing a regular TCP listening port) is the standard way
6849 of connecting the 'gpg-agent'.
6852 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPGSM Examples, Next: Unattended Usage, Prev: GPGSM Configuration, Up: Invoking GPGSM
6857 $ gpgsm -er goo@bar.net <plaintext >ciphertext
6860 File: gnupg.info, Node: Unattended Usage, Next: GPGSM Protocol, Prev: GPGSM Examples, Up: Invoking GPGSM
6862 5.5 Unattended Usage
6863 ====================
6865 'gpgsm' is often used as a backend engine by other software. To help
6866 with this a machine interface has been defined to have an unambiguous
6867 way to do this. This is most likely used with the '--server' command
6868 but may also be used in the standard operation mode by using the
6869 '--status-fd' option.
6873 * Automated signature checking:: Automated signature checking.
6874 * CSR and certificate creation:: CSR and certificate creation.
6877 File: gnupg.info, Node: Automated signature checking, Next: CSR and certificate creation, Up: Unattended Usage
6879 5.5.1 Automated signature checking
6880 ----------------------------------
6882 It is very important to understand the semantics used with signature
6883 verification. Checking a signature is not as simple as it may sound and
6884 so the operation is a bit complicated. In most cases it is required to
6885 look at several status lines. Here is a table of all cases a signed
6888 The signature is valid
6889 This does mean that the signature has been successfully verified,
6890 the certificates are all sane. However there are two subcases with
6891 important information: One of the certificates may have expired or
6892 a signature of a message itself as expired. It is a sound practise
6893 to consider such a signature still as valid but additional
6894 information should be displayed. Depending on the subcase 'gpgsm'
6895 will issue these status codes:
6896 signature valid and nothing did expire
6897 'GOODSIG', 'VALIDSIG', 'TRUST_FULLY'
6898 signature valid but at least one certificate has expired
6899 'EXPKEYSIG', 'VALIDSIG', 'TRUST_FULLY'
6900 signature valid but expired
6901 'EXPSIG', 'VALIDSIG', 'TRUST_FULLY' Note, that this case is
6902 currently not implemented.
6904 The signature is invalid
6905 This means that the signature verification failed (this is an
6906 indication of a transfer error, a program error or tampering with
6907 the message). 'gpgsm' issues one of these status codes sequences:
6909 'GOODSIG, VALIDSIG TRUST_NEVER'
6911 Error verifying a signature
6912 For some reason the signature could not be verified, i.e. it
6913 cannot be decided whether the signature is valid or invalid. A
6914 common reason for this is a missing certificate.
6917 File: gnupg.info, Node: CSR and certificate creation, Prev: Automated signature checking, Up: Unattended Usage
6919 5.5.2 CSR and certificate creation
6920 ----------------------------------
6922 The command '--generate-key' may be used along with the option '--batch'
6923 to either create a certificate signing request (CSR) or an X.509
6924 certificate. This is controlled by a parameter file; the format of this
6927 * Text only, line length is limited to about 1000 characters.
6928 * UTF-8 encoding must be used to specify non-ASCII characters.
6929 * Empty lines are ignored.
6930 * Leading and trailing while space is ignored.
6931 * A hash sign as the first non white space character indicates a
6933 * Control statements are indicated by a leading percent sign, the
6934 arguments are separated by white space from the keyword.
6935 * Parameters are specified by a keyword, followed by a colon.
6936 Arguments are separated by white space.
6937 * The first parameter must be 'Key-Type', control statements may be
6939 * The order of the parameters does not matter except for 'Key-Type'
6940 which must be the first parameter. The parameters are only used
6941 for the generated CSR/certificate; parameters from previous sets
6942 are not used. Some syntactically checks may be performed.
6943 * Key generation takes place when either the end of the parameter
6944 file is reached, the next 'Key-Type' parameter is encountered or at
6945 the control statement '%commit' is encountered.
6950 Print TEXT as diagnostic.
6953 Suppress actual key generation (useful for syntax checking).
6956 Perform the key generation. Note that an implicit commit is done
6957 at the next Key-Type parameter.
6962 Starts a new parameter block by giving the type of the primary key.
6963 The algorithm must be capable of signing. This is a required
6964 parameter. The only supported value for ALGO is 'rsa'.
6967 The requested length of a generated key in bits. Defaults to 3072.
6970 This is optional and used to generate a CSR or certificate for an
6971 already existing key. Key-Length will be ignored when given.
6973 Key-Usage: USAGE-LIST
6974 Space or comma delimited list of key usage, allowed values are
6975 'encrypt', 'sign' and 'cert'. This is used to generate the
6976 keyUsage extension. Please make sure that the algorithm is capable
6977 of this usage. Default is to allow encrypt and sign.
6979 Name-DN: SUBJECT-NAME
6980 This is the Distinguished Name (DN) of the subject in RFC-2253
6984 This is an email address for the altSubjectName. This parameter is
6985 optional but may occur several times to add several email addresses
6989 The is an DNS name for the altSubjectName. This parameter is
6990 optional but may occur several times to add several DNS names to a
6994 This is an URI for the altSubjectName. This parameter is optional
6995 but may occur several times to add several URIs to a certificate.
6997 Additional parameters used to create a certificate (in contrast to a
6998 certificate signing request):
7001 If this parameter is given an X.509 certificate will be generated.
7002 SN is expected to be a hex string representing an unsigned integer
7003 of arbitrary length. The special value 'random' can be used to
7004 create a 64 bit random serial number.
7006 Issuer-DN: ISSUER-NAME
7007 This is the DN name of the issuer in RFC-2253 format. If it is not
7008 set it will default to the subject DN and a special GnuPG extension
7009 will be included in the certificate to mark it as a standalone
7012 Creation-Date: ISO-DATE
7013 Not-Before: ISO-DATE
7014 Set the notBefore date of the certificate. Either a date like
7015 '1986-04-26' or '1986-04-26 12:00' or a standard ISO timestamp like
7016 '19860426T042640' may be used. The time is considered to be UTC.
7017 If it is not given the current date is used.
7019 Expire-Date: ISO-DATE
7021 Set the notAfter date of the certificate. Either a date like
7022 '2063-04-05' or '2063-04-05 17:00' or a standard ISO timestamp like
7023 '20630405T170000' may be used. The time is considered to be UTC.
7024 If it is not given a default value in the not too far future is
7027 Signing-Key: KEYGRIP
7028 This gives the keygrip of the key used to sign the certificate. If
7029 it is not given a self-signed certificate will be created. For
7030 compatibility with future versions, it is suggested to prefix the
7033 Hash-Algo: HASH-ALGO
7034 Use HASH-ALGO for this CSR or certificate. The supported hash
7035 algorithms are: 'sha1', 'sha256', 'sha384' and 'sha512'; they may
7036 also be specified with uppercase letters. The default is 'sha256'.
7039 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPGSM Protocol, Prev: Unattended Usage, Up: Invoking GPGSM
7041 5.6 The Protocol the Server Mode Uses
7042 =====================================
7044 Description of the protocol used to access 'GPGSM'. 'GPGSM' does
7045 implement the Assuan protocol and in addition provides a regular command
7046 line interface which exhibits a full client to this protocol (but uses
7047 internal linking). To start 'gpgsm' as a server the command line the
7048 option '--server' must be used. Additional options are provided to
7049 select the communication method (i.e. the name of the socket).
7051 We assume that the connection has already been established; see the
7052 Assuan manual for details.
7056 * GPGSM ENCRYPT:: Encrypting a message.
7057 * GPGSM DECRYPT:: Decrypting a message.
7058 * GPGSM SIGN:: Signing a message.
7059 * GPGSM VERIFY:: Verifying a message.
7060 * GPGSM GENKEY:: Generating a key.
7061 * GPGSM LISTKEYS:: List available keys.
7062 * GPGSM EXPORT:: Export certificates.
7063 * GPGSM IMPORT:: Import certificates.
7064 * GPGSM DELETE:: Delete certificates.
7065 * GPGSM GETAUDITLOG:: Retrieve an audit log.
7066 * GPGSM GETINFO:: Information about the process
7067 * GPGSM OPTION:: Session options.
7070 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPGSM ENCRYPT, Next: GPGSM DECRYPT, Up: GPGSM Protocol
7072 5.6.1 Encrypting a Message
7073 --------------------------
7075 Before encryption can be done the recipient must be set using the
7080 Set the recipient for the encryption. USERID should be the internal
7081 representation of the key; the server may accept any other way of
7082 specification. If this is a valid and trusted recipient the server does
7083 respond with OK, otherwise the return is an ERR with the reason why the
7084 recipient cannot be used, the encryption will then not be done for this
7085 recipient. If the policy is not to encrypt at all if not all recipients
7086 are valid, the client has to take care of this. All 'RECIPIENT'
7087 commands are cumulative until a 'RESET' or an successful 'ENCRYPT'
7090 INPUT FD[=N] [--armor|--base64|--binary]
7092 Set the file descriptor for the message to be encrypted to N.
7093 Obviously the pipe must be open at that point, the server establishes
7094 its own end. If the server returns an error the client should consider
7095 this session failed. If N is not given, this commands uses the last
7096 file descriptor passed to the application. *Note the assuan_sendfd
7097 function: (assuan)fun-assuan_sendfd, on how to do descriptor passing.
7099 The '--armor' option may be used to advise the server that the input
7100 data is in PEM format, '--base64' advises that a raw base-64 encoding is
7101 used, '--binary' advises of raw binary input (BER). If none of these
7102 options is used, the server tries to figure out the used encoding, but
7103 this may not always be correct.
7105 OUTPUT FD[=N] [--armor|--base64]
7107 Set the file descriptor to be used for the output (i.e. the
7108 encrypted message). Obviously the pipe must be open at that point, the
7109 server establishes its own end. If the server returns an error the
7110 client should consider this session failed.
7112 The option '--armor' encodes the output in PEM format, the '--base64'
7113 option applies just a base-64 encoding. No option creates binary output
7116 The actual encryption is done using the command
7120 It takes the plaintext from the 'INPUT' command, writes to the
7121 ciphertext to the file descriptor set with the 'OUTPUT' command, take
7122 the recipients from all the recipients set so far. If this command
7123 fails the clients should try to delete all output currently done or
7124 otherwise mark it as invalid. 'GPGSM' does ensure that there will not
7125 be any security problem with leftover data on the output in this case.
7127 This command should in general not fail, as all necessary checks have
7128 been done while setting the recipients. The input and output pipes are